Mauritian President denies her plans to resign

Ameenah Gurib-Fakim Mauritian President

Mauritian President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, the first woman head of state of the Indian Ocean island nation, denied any plans to resign and said she’s prepared to go to court over allegations she spent money from a charity on a shopping trip.

Gurib-Fakim’s announcement pitched Mauritius into a constitutional crisis. Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth said March 9 Gurib-Fakim told him she’s stepping down amid accusations she shopped using a credit card given to her by the Planet Earth Institute, a non-governmental organization linked to an Angolan businessman and philanthropist.

“Having nothing to reproach herself with, and being able to bring corroborating evidence, Her Excellency Mrs. Ameenah Gurib-Fakim rejects any prospect of resignation,” the presidency said in a statement on Wednesday. “She is also now ready to take legal action to defend herself against the slanderous accusations that would target her.”

Gurib-Fakim “inadvertently” used a payment card issued to her by the PEI in 2016 that was identical to a bank card she already had, according to Wednesday’s statement. After informing the PEI she’d used their card for about $27,000 of “out-of-pocket expenses,” she immediately reimbursed the institute in addition to other expenses incurred on a PEI trip.

Resignation Announcement

Jugnauth announced Gurib-Fakim’s resignation after a meeting at state house. She planned to leave the largely ceremonial position after celebrations to mark the nation’s 50th independence anniversary on March 12, he said.

Under Mauritius’s constitution, the president can only be removed if it’s proven before a special tribunal that they committed a serious act of misconduct, said Arvin Halkhoree, a barrister at the Ebene-based Jurisconsult Chambers. The smooth running of the state also requires effective collaboration between the office of the presidency and the government, he said by phone.

“We are in a constitutional crisis at the helm of the country,” Halkhoree said. “We are in unchartered waters. It’s never happened before.”

Two spokesmen for Jugnauth said they couldn’t immediately comment when contacted on Wednesday.

The government “will communicate its stand at the appropriate time” and “the course of action is yet to be finalized,” Raj Meetarbhan, an adviser to Jugnauth, told Port Louis-based Radio Plus.

“Twice she said that she will resign,” he said. “She needs to go and provide space to public institutions to operate properly.”