Deputy Prime Minister of Mauritius
Encyclopedia
The Deputy Prime Minister of Mauritius is a senior member of the Cabinet of Ministers
in the country .He/she is appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.Having the same name ,this position is not to be confused with the Vice Prime Minister of Mauritius
who is just a senior member of the cabinet and is under the Deputy Prime Minister in the cabinet hierarchy .He/she may be revoked by the President still acting on the advice of the Prime Minister .The Deputy Prime Minister is a senior member of the cabinet but is not the first person to hold the office of Prime Minister in case of death or resignation of the latter .He/she is considered as a cabinet minister with the capacity to carry certain tasks as directed by the head of the government .According to the constitution of the republic ,there shall be a Prime Minister and a Deputy Prime Minister who shall be appointed by the President.The Deputy Prime Minister is the first person to hold the office of Prime Minister and head of government in case the latter is absent from Mauritius
or is by reason of illness or of section 60(5) unable to perform the functions conferred on him by this Constitution.The President, by directions in writing, authorize the Deputy Prime Minister or, in his absence, some other Minister to perform those functions and that Minister may perform those functions until his authority is revoked by the President.
Whereas the Deputy Prime Minister may have the power to hold the office of Premier when the latter is not able to perform duties ,he/she does not succeed to the Prime Minister in case of death or resignation of the office holder .He/she becomes the Acting Prime Minister until the majority party elects a new leader and thus advice the President to appoint him/her as Prime Minister .The Deputy Prime Minister may nevertheless propose candidacy to the leadership of the party forming the government .In case he/she is elected Leader ,the President therefore appoints the person as Prime Minister .
The Deputy Prime Minister is often a position given to the junior party leader in a coalition government where the senior party leader is named Prime Minister and the leader of the junior party is appointed as his deputy .The same has happen in United Kingdom elections in 2010 where Conservative leader David Cameron
was appointed as Prime Minister and the leader of the Liberal democrats Nick Clegg
was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister .
The actual Deputy Prime Minister is Rashid Beebeejaun
and has take office from July 2005 and is serving in the cabinet of Navin Ramgoolam
.
was first appointed as such and also implemented the law of Best Loser System
.The Mauritian Social Democrat Party
was rather against the evolution of Mauritius into an independent country. At that time ,the Mauritian Labour Party
allied itself with the Muslim Action Committee so as to make a majority and they won the elections of 1967 .
Sir Ramgoolam became 1st Prime Minister and Mohamed became 1st Deputy Prime Minister .The powers and department as well as legislation of the Deputy Prime Minister is decided by the Prime Minister .In all cases ,the deputy is assigned to a ministerial portfolio .When the leverage is higher ,a rather important Ministry is given to the Deputy and where the leverage is weak ,a rather symbolic and less important ministry is assigned to the Minister .
In 1967 ,Sir Ramgoolam proposed Mohammed as his Deputy so as to receive votes from the Muslim community ,same as in 1983 when Anerood Jugnauth
proposed Duval as his deputy so as to receive votes from the Christian community .Therefore the post of Deputy Prime Minister is most of the time used to ensure and cover the needs and representation of the minorities of the Country .
Cabinet of Ministers of Mauritius
The Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Mauritius is the official council which advises the President of the Republic to take major decisions...
in the country .He/she is appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.Having the same name ,this position is not to be confused with the Vice Prime Minister of Mauritius
Vice Prime Minister of Mauritius
Vice Prime Minister of Mauritius is a title granted to two senior members of the Cabinet of the country. In 2005, after the Labour Party won the elections, Navin Ramgoolam proposed a motion to the National Assembly to create offices for two Vice Prime Ministers...
who is just a senior member of the cabinet and is under the Deputy Prime Minister in the cabinet hierarchy .He/she may be revoked by the President still acting on the advice of the Prime Minister .The Deputy Prime Minister is a senior member of the cabinet but is not the first person to hold the office of Prime Minister in case of death or resignation of the latter .He/she is considered as a cabinet minister with the capacity to carry certain tasks as directed by the head of the government .According to the constitution of the republic ,there shall be a Prime Minister and a Deputy Prime Minister who shall be appointed by the President.The Deputy Prime Minister is the first person to hold the office of Prime Minister and head of government in case the latter is absent from Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
or is by reason of illness or of section 60(5) unable to perform the functions conferred on him by this Constitution.The President, by directions in writing, authorize the Deputy Prime Minister or, in his absence, some other Minister to perform those functions and that Minister may perform those functions until his authority is revoked by the President.
Whereas the Deputy Prime Minister may have the power to hold the office of Premier when the latter is not able to perform duties ,he/she does not succeed to the Prime Minister in case of death or resignation of the office holder .He/she becomes the Acting Prime Minister until the majority party elects a new leader and thus advice the President to appoint him/her as Prime Minister .The Deputy Prime Minister may nevertheless propose candidacy to the leadership of the party forming the government .In case he/she is elected Leader ,the President therefore appoints the person as Prime Minister .
The Deputy Prime Minister is often a position given to the junior party leader in a coalition government where the senior party leader is named Prime Minister and the leader of the junior party is appointed as his deputy .The same has happen in United Kingdom elections in 2010 where Conservative leader David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
was appointed as Prime Minister and the leader of the Liberal democrats Nick Clegg
Nick Clegg
Nicholas William Peter "Nick" Clegg is a British Liberal Democrat politician who is currently the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord President of the Council and Minister for Constitutional and Political Reform in the coalition government of which David Cameron is the Prime Minister...
was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister .
The actual Deputy Prime Minister is Rashid Beebeejaun
Rashid Beebeejaun
Ahmed Rashid Beebeejaun, GCSK is the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Utilities of Mauritius having been in office since 2008. He is the Deputy leader of the Mauritian Labor Party since 2004 and is the first person to hold office of Prime Minister in the Mauritius line of Succession...
and has take office from July 2005 and is serving in the cabinet of Navin Ramgoolam
Navin Ramgoolam
Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP, MP is the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Minister of Defence, Home Affairs & External Communications, as well as Leader of the National Assembly. Being the leader of the Mauritian Labour Party, he serves as Member of parliament for constituency No...
.
History
The office of Deputy Prime Minister was provided in the original constitution of 1968 which became the law of the country .Abdool Razack MohamedAbdool Razack Mohamed
Sir Abdool Razack Mohamed Kt, MP is an Indian born former key Mauritian Minister in the pre and post-independence cabinet of Mauritius. He is celebrated as one of the fathers of the modern state of Mauritius, and he was the leader of the political party called the CAM...
was first appointed as such and also implemented the law of Best Loser System
Constituencies of Mauritius
Constituencies of Mauritius are the electoral boundaries of the Republic.The country follows the Westminster and elects 60 members of parliament for a run of 5 years .There are in all 21 constituencies in the Republic each of them returning 3 members with the exception of Constituency No 21 ,which...
.The Mauritian Social Democrat Party
Mauritian Social Democrat Party
The Mauritian Social Democratic Party is a political party in Mauritius. It is conservative and francophile. It is the 4th biggest political party in the National Assembly after Mauritian Labour Party, Mauritian Militant Movement and the Militant Socialist Movement...
was rather against the evolution of Mauritius into an independent country. At that time ,the Mauritian Labour Party
Mauritian Labour Party
The Labour Party is a political party in Mauritius.The Mauritian Labour Party was structured in 1936 to model the British Labour Party and has similar socialist goals...
allied itself with the Muslim Action Committee so as to make a majority and they won the elections of 1967 .
Sir Ramgoolam became 1st Prime Minister and Mohamed became 1st Deputy Prime Minister .The powers and department as well as legislation of the Deputy Prime Minister is decided by the Prime Minister .In all cases ,the deputy is assigned to a ministerial portfolio .When the leverage is higher ,a rather important Ministry is given to the Deputy and where the leverage is weak ,a rather symbolic and less important ministry is assigned to the Minister .
1976 and onwards
The person to hold the office of Deputy Prime Minister for the longest run was Sir Gaetan Duval who held the office for a period of 11 years from 1976 to 1982 and from 1983 to 1988 . and the second person to hold the office for the longest run after Duval is Mohammed who held the office from 1967 to 1976 for a period of 9 years .Communal Role
This position is merely to appease the demands of the minority communities of the population ,namely Christians and Muslims .In order to receive votes from all communities so as to ensure a comfortable majority in the parliament ,most of the time ,leaders of the majority community namely the Hindus ,conclude electoral alliance with those minority parties so as to enjoy governmental majority .In 1967 ,Sir Ramgoolam proposed Mohammed as his Deputy so as to receive votes from the Muslim community ,same as in 1983 when Anerood Jugnauth
Anerood Jugnauth
Sir Anerood Jugnauth , KCMG, QC, GCSK, PC, LLB, GOLH, GOP, ORS is the President of Mauritius and all its dependencies...
proposed Duval as his deputy so as to receive votes from the Christian community .Therefore the post of Deputy Prime Minister is most of the time used to ensure and cover the needs and representation of the minorities of the Country .
List of Deputy Prime Ministers
| # | Name | Took office | Left office | Party | Prime Minister |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| British Commonwealth of Mauritius Mauritius Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar... |
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| 1 | Abdool Razack Mohamed Abdool Razack Mohamed Sir Abdool Razack Mohamed Kt, MP is an Indian born former key Mauritian Minister in the pre and post-independence cabinet of Mauritius. He is celebrated as one of the fathers of the modern state of Mauritius, and he was the leader of the political party called the CAM... |
12 March 1968 | 20 December 1976 | Muslim Action Committee | Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam KT,GCMG,KCMG,LRCP, MRCS is the first Chief Minister, Prime Minister and sixth Governor General of Mauritius.... |
| 2 | Gaetan Duval | 20 December 1976 | 11 June 1982 | Mauritian Social Democrat Party Mauritian Social Democrat Party The Mauritian Social Democratic Party is a political party in Mauritius. It is conservative and francophile. It is the 4th biggest political party in the National Assembly after Mauritian Labour Party, Mauritian Militant Movement and the Militant Socialist Movement... |
Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam KT,GCMG,KCMG,LRCP, MRCS is the first Chief Minister, Prime Minister and sixth Governor General of Mauritius.... |
| 3 | Harish Boodhoo | 11 June 1982 | 21 August 1983 | Militant Socialist Movement Militant Socialist Movement The Militant Socialist Movement is a Centre-Right political party in Mauritius that adheres to the philosophies of socialism and political democracy. It is the 3rd largest political party in the National Assembly. It has in all 13 seats directly elected from the 2010 general elections... (that time known as Mauritian Socialist Party) |
Sir Anerood Jugnauth |
| 4 | Gaetan Duval | 21 August 1983 | 11 December 1988 | Mauritian Social Democrat Party Mauritian Social Democrat Party The Mauritian Social Democratic Party is a political party in Mauritius. It is conservative and francophile. It is the 4th biggest political party in the National Assembly after Mauritian Labour Party, Mauritian Militant Movement and the Militant Socialist Movement... |
Sir Anerood Jugnauth |
| 5 | Satcam Boolell | 11 December 1988 | 25 February 1990 | Mauritian Labour Party Mauritian Labour Party The Labour Party is a political party in Mauritius.The Mauritian Labour Party was structured in 1936 to model the British Labour Party and has similar socialist goals... |
Sir Anerood Jugnauth |
| Republic of Mauritius Mauritius Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar... |
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| 6 | Prem Nababsing | 25 February 1990 | 20 December 1995 | Mauritian Militant Movement Mauritian Militant Movement The Mouvement Militant Mauricien is a socialist political party in Mauritius. The party was formed by a group of students in the late 1960s. The MMM is currently led by Paul Bérenger.... |
Sir Anerood Jugnauth |
| 7 | Paul Berenger Paul Bérenger Paul Raymond Bérenger GCSK MP is the Leader of the Opposition of Mauritius and former Prime Minister of the Republic. Bérenger, who is a Christian of French descent, is the only Prime Minister of Mauritius who was not a Hindu.... |
20 December 1995 | 16 November 1997 | Mauritian Militant Movement Mauritian Militant Movement The Mouvement Militant Mauricien is a socialist political party in Mauritius. The party was formed by a group of students in the late 1960s. The MMM is currently led by Paul Bérenger.... |
Navin Ramgoolam Navin Ramgoolam Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP, MP is the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Minister of Defence, Home Affairs & External Communications, as well as Leader of the National Assembly. Being the leader of the Mauritian Labour Party, he serves as Member of parliament for constituency No... |
| 8 | Rajeshwar Purryag | 16 November 1997 | 11 September 2000 | Mauritian Labour Party Mauritian Labour Party The Labour Party is a political party in Mauritius.The Mauritian Labour Party was structured in 1936 to model the British Labour Party and has similar socialist goals... |
Navin Ramgoolam Navin Ramgoolam Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP, MP is the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Minister of Defence, Home Affairs & External Communications, as well as Leader of the National Assembly. Being the leader of the Mauritian Labour Party, he serves as Member of parliament for constituency No... |
| 9 | Paul Berenger Paul Bérenger Paul Raymond Bérenger GCSK MP is the Leader of the Opposition of Mauritius and former Prime Minister of the Republic. Bérenger, who is a Christian of French descent, is the only Prime Minister of Mauritius who was not a Hindu.... |
11 September 2000 | 30 September 2003 | Mauritian Militant Movement Mauritian Militant Movement The Mouvement Militant Mauricien is a socialist political party in Mauritius. The party was formed by a group of students in the late 1960s. The MMM is currently led by Paul Bérenger.... |
Sir Anerood Jugnauth |
| 10 | Pravind Jugnauth Pravind Jugnauth Pravind Kumar Jugnauth MP Esq. is the former Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Mauritius who was in office from 11 May 2010 to 26 July 2011. He is also Member of Parliament for the 8th constituency Quartier Militaire and Moka.He is an Indo-Mauritian of Bihari descent. He served in... |
30 September 2003 | 5 July 2005 | Militant Socialist Movement Militant Socialist Movement The Militant Socialist Movement is a Centre-Right political party in Mauritius that adheres to the philosophies of socialism and political democracy. It is the 3rd largest political party in the National Assembly. It has in all 13 seats directly elected from the 2010 general elections... |
Paul Berenger Paul Bérenger Paul Raymond Bérenger GCSK MP is the Leader of the Opposition of Mauritius and former Prime Minister of the Republic. Bérenger, who is a Christian of French descent, is the only Prime Minister of Mauritius who was not a Hindu.... |
| 11 | Rashid Beebeejaun Rashid Beebeejaun Ahmed Rashid Beebeejaun, GCSK is the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Utilities of Mauritius having been in office since 2008. He is the Deputy leader of the Mauritian Labor Party since 2004 and is the first person to hold office of Prime Minister in the Mauritius line of Succession... |
5 July 2005 | Incumbent | Mauritian Labour Party Mauritian Labour Party The Labour Party is a political party in Mauritius.The Mauritian Labour Party was structured in 1936 to model the British Labour Party and has similar socialist goals... |
Navin Ramgoolam Navin Ramgoolam Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP, MP is the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Minister of Defence, Home Affairs & External Communications, as well as Leader of the National Assembly. Being the leader of the Mauritian Labour Party, he serves as Member of parliament for constituency No... |