Alliance of Change - Year 2: Prove or Perish Politically
The Alliance of Change is revitalized. At the top of the government, the storm has calmed. The handshake between Ramgoolam and Bérenger last week not only established a ceasefire; it signifies a commitment to restore governmental coherence and finally implement the program that brought them to power.
The latest Cabinet meeting reflected this: longer than usual, but due to an abundance of productivity, not friction. Files are being processed, decisions are flowing, and ministers are engaged. In the corridors, there is a renewed sense of ‘working environment.’ The majority is becoming a government again, rather than a coalition on political life support. The machinery has regained its pace—one that must accelerate in year two. The testing phase can no longer continue.
Political adrenaline rises
Yet, midway through the week, a shiver ran through the alliance: the announcement of a press conference by Paul Bérenger. Instantly, memories of the December crisis resurfaced: controlled anxiety for some, rising blood pressure for others.
Those close to the purple patriarch know: a too free phrase, a misdirected arrow, and the still-warm embers could reignite. No one desires another episode of the “Mauritian Game of Thrones.”
However, his entourage reassures: no trial, no rupture. He wants to "set the record straight," to correct the notion of a "flip-flop" against him. That term hurt him. And when Paul Bérenger doesn’t digest well… it’s the entire political digestive system that flares up, quips a purple minister.
Two currents, and acrobats
Within the MMM, the fracture has not disappeared:
• Those who believe leaving the government would be suicidal.
• Those who will follow their leader no matter which way he takes—even if it leads away from power.
And in the middle, the tightrope walkers: “yes” to the Prime Minister, “yes” to the purple leader… exactly swaying with the wind. Such profiles exist everywhere; but in a tense coalition, they become crucial. Like the minister who didn’t respond to anyone during the three days of maximum alert.
As for Joanna Bérenger, some envisioned her already in the opposition or on the purple throne. She denies it.
Ramgoolam takes control
Navin Ramgoolam methodically advances his pieces. The reappointment of the police commissioner has proven it: he sets the course, and no one else. This gesture carries a message: the Prime Minister will not be led by proxy.
Moreover, the insistence on the possible appointment of Dhiren Dabee as head of Air Mauritius is seen as an additional demonstration of authority.
Navin Ramgoolam seems determined to erase a perception: that the Prime Minister is under the tutelage of the historical purple figure. The crisis has certainly made him reflect; the response must be political. And visible.
Challenges that cannot wait
For year two, the tasks are immense. They will not tolerate free-spirited egos or partisan interludes.
Drugs. They corrode, they kill, they infiltrate. The National Crime Agency must strike accurately and swiftly—and especially high.
Security. Fear is becoming a part of everyday life. The law must once again be a concrete protection, not a comforting memory.
Cost of living. No reform will survive if the Mauritian shopping basket continues to get heavier. This is where public trust is at stake.
Tomorrow’s wealth. Energy transition, ocean economy, digital: the future must move from PowerPoint slides to people’s lives.
Artificial intelligence. The world is accelerating. Mauritius can no longer afford to watch trains pass by.
The time for accountability is already approaching
In a five-year term, three years to build, the fourth to defend, and the fifth to account. Thus, the Alliance of Change enters the only year that truly matters: the one where they move from rhetoric to results, from program to proof of power. If they succeed: a constructed narrative. If they fail: immediate response from the ballot box.
Mauritians do not expect a perfect government. They want an effective one. And above all, united.
At over 80 years old, Ramgoolam and Bérenger are at the age where politicians are no longer seeking conquest… but posterity. They have a unique opportunity to conclude their careers beautifully, to leave a mark that transcends their personal legends, to turn their final act into a historical chapter.
They cannot afford to squander their last mandate. Nor to end up in a muddle, drowned in their disputes, forgotten by the History they have helped to write.
Year two begins. It will determine whether their legacy will be a reference… or a regret.