<B>Three women labourers killed on the road</B>

Three women, walking along sugar cane fields on the northern highway, were killed on the spot when a car left the road and bumped into them. Three others have been severely injured. This accident, last Thursday, is another proof that Mauritian roads have become increasingly lethal and there is an urgent need to prevent such tragedies.

Pavitree Dhansa, Shantee Ramchandar and Ootra Ramkissen died following multiple injuries. Savitra Hauradhan, Kisnawtee Bholah and Shrimati Bholah – are in hospital with severe wounds.

The driver, Fabien Casimir, a 27 year-old bouncer, was driving to Grand-Bay when his car left the road and he lost control on the vehicle. This is what other labourers who witnessed the accident remember. Under the shock, two fainted after seeing their colleagues’ dead bodies.

The driver was slightly injured and taken to hospital for medical care. He is provisionally charged with manslaughter. His breathalyser test was negative. His passenger was not injured. The police have opened an inquiry and the driver’s statement should help shed more light on its cause.

<B>New Icac boss is coming…</B>

The countdown is on. The president of the Republic, Sir Anerood Jugnauth, has given his assent to the amendments brought to the Prevention of Corruption Act 2002. The new law will be published in the Government gazette next Saturday. Commissioner Navin Beekarry and his two deputies, Moussa Taujoo and Gérard Bisasur, can start packing as they will have to leave on Saturday. The amount of their compensation has not been finalised but it should not exceed Rs 5 million. A general director, appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the opposition leader, will most probably be appointed as soon as the PM comes back from New York. The Appointments Committee is now a thing of the past.

<B>Moody’s shows trust in MCB</B>

The report by international rating agency Moody’s on the Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB) must have rejoiced the latter. Moody’s asserts that the bank can turn the page on the episode of the fraud and concentrate on its banking activities. After the charges against the two top managers, Philippe A. Forget and Pierre-Guy Noël, were abandoned, the bank should benefit from a sounder atmosphere. The board had always supported them. The international agency also recognises the efforts made by the MCB to review its structure and organisation and thinks this is positive for the future.

<B>Indian ethanol factory steps in</B>

Chandni Oil, an Indian firm specialising in ethanol production, is settling in Mauritius.

The construction of the factory, at a cost of Rs 600 million, should start in December and end in September 2006. With the increase in oil prices and the coming drop in sugar export prices, this factory comes at the right time. The ethanol will be mixed with petrol to reduce prices. At the beginning, it will import molasses but it should use local sugar cane in two years. Most of the ethanol produced will be exported to Africa. The company’s board chairman, Jayesh Ajwani, has guaranteed that the process is environment-friendly.

<B>Killed for his mobile phone</B>

Rishi Seedam was stabbed while he was leaving the Champ-de-Mars after he had spent the whole day watching horse races. As he was going home, four men surrounded him and tried to steal his wallet and his mobile. The 29 year-old man was killed as he was trying to resist his attackers. The latter have all been arrested and are provisionally accused of murder.

<B>ICAC suffers another snub from Supreme Court</B>

Senior Puisne Judge Bernard Sik Yuen has once again laid discredit upon the Independent Commission against Corruption (Icac). The commission has not been able to counter-attack the counter-affidavit of the Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB). The case dates from June when the Icac asked the Court to allow it access to documents on the MCB regarding 10 different companies. But the MCB refused through another affidavit as it considered that ICAC’s request was not made “with clear hands” and it could well use the information against the bank in the future. The case was supposed to be discussed in Court last week but the commission requested that the delay to reply to the bank’s affidavit be extended as the amendments to the Prevention of Corruption Act had prevented it from doing so up to then. But the judge refused and decided to “strike off” the case. Moreover, the MCB made it clear that the Icac had lost the preliminary report of Kroll Associates that the bank had handed out to the commission.