President of Mauritius

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President of the Republic of Mauritius
Président de la République de Maurice
Vice President of Mauritius
SalaryRs 3.74 Million[1]
WebsiteOfficial website
Politics of Mauritius
Constitution
Presidency
Government
Legislature
Judiciary
Elections
Administrative divisions
Foreign relations

The president of the Republic of Mauritius (

State House.[4]

Overview

Mauritius is a

commander-in-chief. The president is required to uphold and defend the Constitution of Mauritius and ensure that the institutions of democracy and rule of law are protected, the fundamental rights of all are respected and the unity of the diverse Mauritian nation is maintained and strengthened. Whilst in office, the president should not hold any other office of emolument, whether under the Constitution or otherwise and exercise any profession or calling or engage in any trade or business.[5]

The president is obliged to suspend his (or her) membership in any political party for the term in office. Upon assuming office, the authority and duties of the president in all other elected or appointed offices terminate automatically. These measures should theoretically help the president to function in a more independent and impartial manner.

The power of Parliament to make laws shall be exercisable by bills passed by the Assembly and assented to by the president. When a bill is submitted to the president for assent in accordance with the Constitution, he shall signify that he assents or that he withholds assent. In the exercise of his functions, the president shall act in accordance with the advice of the Cabinet or of a minister acting under the general authority of the Cabinet except in cases where he is required by the Constitution to act in accordance with the advice of, or after consultation with, any person or authority other than the Cabinet or in his own deliberate judgment.[5]

According to Chapter VI, section 58 of the constitution executive authority of Mauritius is vested in the president, that authority may be exercised by the president either directly or through officers subordinate to him.[5]

The prime minister shall keep the president fully informed concerning the general conduct of the government of Mauritius and shall furnish the president with such information as he may request with respect to any particular matter relating to the government of Mauritius.[5]

The president serves as chancellor of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean, the highest distinct order of merit of Mauritius. The president, on the recommendation of the prime minister, announces the list of honorees and personally decorates them. The ceremony is held on 12 March each year.

The office of the president has the mission to assist the president of the Republic in his duties to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and promote national unity.[6]

The president makes a number of important public speeches and statements each year. The most notable of these are the annual

New Year’s Speech
on 1 January, and the speech at the opening of each annual session of Parliament.

Historical background

See also:
List of presidents of Mauritius

The office of president was created on 12 March 1992 after Mauritius became a

vice president of Mauritius held the office as acting president on 15 February 2002, he resigned after two days. Ariranga Pillay became acting president from 18 February 2002 to 25 February 2002. Karl Offmann was elected in 2002, he held office from 25 February 2002 and resigned on 1 October 2003. Raouf Bundhun became acting president from 1 October 2003 to 7 October 2003.[8][9]

Sir Anerood Jugnauth was elected in 2003. Taking office on 7 October 2003, he was re-elected in 2008. In March 2012, Sir Anerood criticised the government, saying that the economy has entered in a vicious circle of economic loss and the population are suffering. The prime minister Navin Ramgoolam said that the presidency was an apolitical office and invited him to join the political arena.[10] SAJ resigned on 31 March 2012 and make his comeback in politics, he took the lead of his former party Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) which just break it alliance with the Labour party and left the government because of corruption accusation, the Medpoint Scandal. After the return of Sir Anerood, the MSM concluded an alliance with the opposition party Mauritian Militant Movement
.

Monique Ohsan Bellepeau the then–vice president acted as president from 31 March 2012 to 21 July 2012. Kailash Purryag was elected as the fifth president of Mauritius by members of the National Assembly on Friday 20 July.[11]

Monique Ohsan Bellepeau again acted as president from 1 June 2015 to 5 June 2015[12] prior to the inauguration of Ameenah Gurib-Fakim.[13] She is the first woman to ever hold the title of president of Mauritius.[13] Her ascendancy to the presidency was facilitated by a constitutional conundrum that had gripped Mauritius since Alliance L’Avenir came to power in 2010. In 2014, the Alliance L’Avenir entered into an agreement with the Alliance L’Avenir on the basis of constitutional reform which would have seen Mauritius turning into a semi-presidential state where the president would be conferred the power of dissolution, having a direct role in shaping foreign policy and, chairing government meetings. In December 2014, voters rejected the proposals to give the president greater powers.[14]

Selection process

Eligibility

The President must have been at least 40 years old and have resided in Mauritius for at least 5 years immediately preceding the election.

Election

According to the Chapter IV Section 28 of the Constitution of Mauritius, the president shall be elected by the National Assembly on a motion made by the

chief justice.[15]

As of 2021, there is a two-term limit for the president in the Constitution of Mauritius. The first president for whom the term limits applied was Cassam Uteem in 2002.[16]

Oath of office

A person elected to the office of president shall, before assuming his functions, take and subscribe the appropriate oath as set out in the Third Schedule of the Constitution of Mauritius. The oath shall be administered by the chief justice.[5]

I, ...................................., do swear (or solemnly affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President and will, to the best of my ability without favour or prejudice, defend the Constitution, and the institutions of democracy and the rule of law, ensure that the fundamental rights are protected and the unity of the diverse Mauritian nation maintained and strengthened

Succession

In the event of a vacancy the

chief justice of Mauritius will serve as acting president.[17]

See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Presidents of Mauritius.

References

  1. ^ "Salaires revus pour ministres, députés et président" (in French). L'Express (Mauritius). Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  2. ^ "The President of the Republic". Presidency website. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  3. ^ "Mauritius: National Assembly Elects chatwa Roopun As President of the Republic of Mauritius". AllAfrica. 2 December 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
  4. ^ "Profile of the President". Presidency website. Archived from the original on 8 May 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Constitution of Mauritius" (PDF). Government of Mauritius. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  6. ^ "Office of the President" (PDF). Government of Mauritius. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 November 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
  7. ^ "Mauritius president resigns". BBC. 15 February 2002. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
  8. ^ "Former Governors/Presidents". Presidency website. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
  9. ^ "Presidents". worldstatesmen.org. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
  10. ^ "Navin Ramgoolam : "Si SAJ a le courage qu'il descende dans l'arène !"" (in French). Le Matinal. 19 March 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
  11. ^ "National Assembly – Speaker becomes President of the Republic New Speaker takes office". Le Défi Media Group. Archived from the original on 18 August 2012. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
  12. ^ Laurent, Thierry. "Après un accord avec le gouvernement : Kailash Purryag tire sa révérence". Archived from the original on 3 June 2015. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  13. ^
    Port-Louis: Yahoo! News. AFP
    . 1 June 2015. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
  14. ^ http://dspace.africaportal.org/jspui/bitstream/123456789/35248/1/Mauritius%20First%20woman%20president%20Policy%20Brief.pdf[permanent dead link]
  15. ^ "The President". Government of Mauritius. Archived from the original on 6 December 2013. Retrieved 18 January 2013.
  16. ^ Cook, Candace; Siegle, Joseph. "Circumvention of Term Limits Weakens Governance in Africa". Africa Center for Strategic Studies.
  17. ^ http://president.govmu.org/English/Documents/Communiqu%C3%A9/Communiqu%C3%A9%2026.11.2019.pdf [bare URL PDF]
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