MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL

I wish you a Merry Christmas and a
Happy New Year 2013.
www.lecourriercreole.com

Keep listening to Radio Kontak on the net.
Click on the link below
http://station.voscast.com/5000bc537c8f9/
 The best music ....so entertaining.
Les plus belles chansons francaises et anglaises,
des chansons nostalgiques et des chansons souvenirs.

Politics:
A Maurice, le declin et la fin du regne de Navin Ramgoolam
a commence avec les elections villageoises et municipales.
Bizin are sa kalite majakaro et abus de pouvoir de Navin Ramgoolam.
Navin Ramgoolam indigne d'etre un PM.
Il n'est pas serieux et aime plutot s'amuser.
Sa vie personelle est tintee de scandales.
Ses aventures rocambolesques noctures sont maintenant exposees
le public en sait plus qu'il ne le croit.
Bizin botte son derriere et envoy li dan karo kann.

2013 is election year in Australia.
Le duel entre Julia Gillard et Tony Abbott s'annonce acharne.
la date des elections fixee au 14 Septembre 2013.
La course largee....

All the news and analysis regarding the campaign and the elections,
tune in to Emission Kontak Dimanche on 89.3 fm
Live on the internet at www.893fm.com.au

Cheers
GDL

Council Elections in Mauritius

Elections Municipales a Maurice par GDL

The recent council elections in Mauritius saw  the opposition winning three out of the five councils.
In can be said, three and a half because in Curepipe, the opposition did not win nor did loose. Each of the major blocks won seven seats each. One independent from the MMSD will decide who will administer the town for the next five years.

It was a lost for the government as they have been too long in control of the towns. Instead of having the elections after the five-year term, they stayed in power for another two years. This postponement of the elections was purely a tactic from the central government allowing the councillors to stay in their positions and enjoyed. Unfortunately, they did not use these additional two years towards a more responsible approach but kept indulging in inner bickering, routs and corrupt behaviours.
It looks as if the sound and effective administration of the towns and the welfare of the city dwellers was not their priority.

The leader of the Government and the ruling coalition realising that their councillors have not been up to scratch, put a new team to face the elections. The Prime Minster, Navin Ramgoolam, invested in the campaigns and even danced the sega in the streets to attract media attention. He also got mad when the national television did not show him campaigning at Cite Atlee in Curepipe.

According to an article by Anil Gayan which appeared in L'Express on 11th December 2012, Navin Ramgoolam played the division game during the campaign. He has a type of rhetoric to the Muslims of Plaine Verte and used another language to the Hindus of Palma and La Source. According to the author, this was an attempt at balkanising Mauritius and dividing the electorate on community grounds. Anil Gayan expressed his disgust at such a tactic by the Prime Minister of the country. Many times Navin forget that he is a statesperson and feel more comfortable in the politician role. This is not only a weakness on his part but a shortcoming. He lacks the stature of a PM.

However, this is no strange or new; Navin Ramgoolam  won the past elections while playing on the emotions of the Hindus in rural areas telling them not to vote Paul Berenger as he is not an Hindu. This strategy of divide and rule has up to now worked in his favour. But not this time it seems.

This time he  tried to sow division between the Muslims and the Hindus and targeted Aneerood Jughnuth as the enemy of Muslims. He vehemently attacked SAJ seein him as a direct competitor,  more so because the Jughnuths  are of the same cast as him, Vaish. The results in Sodnac in Quatre Bornes show that there is a change of voting patters of the Hindus. They do not overwhelmingly support Navin Ramgoolam and his corrupt government.

While the victory was overwhelming in Beau Bassin/ Rose Hill, the results were tighter  in Port Louis and Quatre Bornes but a win is a win. It was a psychological boost for the opposition which will give hope to their supporters that the next general elections are winnable.

No matter what happened in Curepipe, the facts are, the government has lost control over the town councils and apparently even in the village councils. The voters sanctioned the government councillors for their lack of dignity, for their abuse of power, the maladministration of the towns and their manze, bwar, amuse, voyager attitudes.

The writings are on the walls for the government alliance. Having all the ministers on the campaign trail,( some even to the extent of bribing the electorate with macaroni packets), was toxic for the government as they are all perceived to be corrupt and incompetent. They repulse the people more than they attract them. There was also the broyani affair which the people of Quatres Bornes were waiting to sanction Nita Deerplasing,  the campaign manager in the town.

The Remake 2000, through these results received the blessing of the people of the towns ( and also of the villages ). But the tandem SAJ and PB need to work harder and not take for granted that the wave is bulding up and the tsunami will strike in 2015.

George's Blog: The lucky country by GDL

George's Blog: The lucky country by GDL: In Australia, we do ot seem to be afraid of uncertainty and not scared of what tomorrow will be. We take forgranted that live in the world...

The lucky country by GDL

In Australia, we do ot seem to be afraid of uncertainty and not scared of what tomorrow will be. We take forgranted that we live in the land of plenty, in the lucky country and that we are  allright. How many times have we not heard, said to someone in trouble, " You'll be allright mate".

In Australia, we have seen boom and bust, we have seen recession and growth, we have seen changes from left wing to right wing governments, we have seen natural catastrophes like flood, fire, cyclones, even earthquakes, but we are still going.

Australia is in fact the lucky country. Many migrants who were living in abject poverty, living on the edge and starving in their thirdworld contries, or again in refugee camps  where tomorrow culd not even be compemplated, have come to this country and now living like a decent human being.
Some have come from wartorn countries to find peace and harmony in Australia, and sleeping tight at night. Others have fled persecutions and discrimnation to find their self-esteem restored here.
Others without any qualifications whatsoever, or could not even say a word of english, have found their way in life here. Not  only they are living very comfrotably, but have had children who are today graduades and professionals.

Australia is a first world  country by living standard and its high GDP per capita.  The country has a rich deposit of mineral resources, has vast arabe land and pastures, and the fundamentals of its economy are strong. We have 10 percent of the very rich, a very big middle class and a very small percentage of  proletariat. Poverty is a relative term in Australia. Someone will  find that he is poor  only by comparison. A relatively poor person in Australia, will always be able to cut his/her clothes according to the cloth. There is always a shop where a poor person can find what he/she needs, and/or find ways to have a roof over his/her head.

Australia is a generous welfare state, with an effective social security system including dole for the unemployed, invalidity benefits, new start allowance, Austudy for the students, and a means-tested old aged pension, just to name a few.

Like most of the developed world and economies, Australia has its social problems. The level of mental health is very high, 285 people are diagnosed with diabetes everyday, there is a high rate of death from cancer and alcohol related diseases. The unemployment rate, if it is only around five percent, means that close to 400,000 people are living on the dole and not able to envisage a clear future. The youth suicide is high and drugs is on the rise among the youth.
There is a proliferation of nursing home because of our ageing population, and that the baby boomers have now reached retirement age. Many children found it easier to send their old ones in nursing homes rather than to care for them, even if it amounts to paying back their respect and dues to their fathers and mothers.
With affluence come individualism and Australians and even migrants, are going down that path. In Australia most people do not know the name of their neighbour and rarely hear a cry for help and step out of your comfort zone and lend a hand, not even find the time to do it. The call is most of the time simply ignored.
This is what characterises our society, the modern and post modern society: individualism, indifference, consumerism, competition, greed, money, money and money.... And the individual will only find this out the day he/she faces the hard reality. But then its is already too late, after the nursing home is the grave, and then forgotten for ever..

GDL.