The opposition MPs seized the opportunity of the first parliamentary session last Tuesday to emphasise the difficulties of the most vulnerable people. Each side of the house came back to the forefront with vigour and forcefulness to defend their stand. The minister of Finance, Rama Sithanen, under fire from opposition leader Nando Bodha, could not help losing patience on a few occasions. But he was adamant that he could not comply with the opposition’s request to review wage compensation upwards.

Calling upon the tripartite committee “is not warranted”, said the minister of Finance. And it is absolutely out of the question to start such a process. He said he was fully aware that the purchasing power of people has gone down but he made it clear he had no magic wand to change this situation overnight. Only economic growth can lead to an increase in purchasing power. And he is convinced that the reforms in his budget will lead to a brighter future for all citizens.

<B>Point at former government</B>

But the opposition leader did not appear as convinced as the minister and returned to the fray stating the percentage of increase of some commodities such as 92% for bread. When minister Sithanen recalled the implementation of his income support for the most vulnerable – aimed at helping those people to face increases – opposition members burst into laughter.

Rama Sithanen is definitely not on the same wavelength as his opposition colleagues. Several times, he seized the opportunity to point at the former government, “Those who have raided the economy of Mauritius can’t talk like that. Those who have wasted public money to that extent can’t make such speeches. We don’t have any lessons to learn from them.”

On other occasions, he preferred to point at what has improved since the present government came to power – a drop in the unemployment rate as well as a slight economic recovery in general. Because it is only if this trend goes on that the whole population will finally feel the benefits of the reforms.

The opposition could have expected that its request would not be given any follow-up – the government had warned it was in no position to review the wage compensation. However, the opposition seized the golden opportunity to demonstrate to the public that it has its welfare at heart.