Still Think Ramgoolam is Not Made For Politics?

Or you might be in the mood for that dumb fairy tale that his dad had said he should never dab into politics. The way he's been controlling the local political chessboard for the past 10 or so years should be ample proof that he simply has no match for now. It's not that he's invincible. Rather his opponents are painfully too weak.

Granted the PM has matured quite a bit: he's been understanding the importance of monetary policy for a while now; foreign policy has become more skillful (the opposition simply cannot deliver this kind of performance) and the toxic bean-counting duet has been neutered. Yet, he still doesn't have a legacy that will not be sneezed at. After three terms.

That could change in a few weeks when he presents his first -- and much awaited -- budget.

2013: The Year in Review (Q4)

October: Ramgoolam sends toxic bean-counter packing. Ferguson is fan of Pele. Mansoor found Mao's cat. Munro may write again, after winning Nobel. Go ahead, make some good mistakes. Rose-Hill Transport takes service to new levels. World's most beautiful woman turns 40.

November: Desvaux says Illovo split switched after meeting. More proof crisis is homemade. 15% flat tax is enemy of good growth. Shouldn't we create a fiscal policy committee? Cricket-crazy nation says goodbye to Sachin. UK Prime Minister sends letter to Forum. How our Standards bureau can save lives. Mozart of chess becomes World Champion.

December: World to mourn Madiba for several days. Bheenick should make Vision 2020 public. Suarez wins player of the year award. Meeting Yvon St. Guillaume. 7.7 milyon malgas vote.

Read the review for Q1, Q2 and Q3.

Mozart of Chess Becomes World Champion

After beating Anand 7-4. So meet, Mr. Carlsen.

Nintendo Player Ends Cooling-off Period

Because he is not convinced that Ramgoolam is serious about presenting a bill to modify the constitutional set up in Parliament. So he will resume talks with the MSM this week. But as he has a big preference for an alliance with the Labour Party expect more zig-zags, about-faces, kustiks and what not.

In the meantime the chess-player improves his majority to 38-31 after poaching MP Bholah from the MSM. Labour now has all three MPs in the riding that returned the former President -- and one of the challengers to Navin Ramgoolam -- many times to parliament.

What now? A couple of defections from the MMM?

Anand Still Undisputed World Chess Champ

After winning the World Chess Championship for the fifth time. I remember finding his name a couple of decades ago listed as a Grandmaster or whatever they call it when Karpov and Kasparov ruled the world and matches against Deep Blue were drawing a lot attention. I was looking for an Indian because they invented the game and just because there are so many of them.

But I got interested a lot more with Bobby Fischer. The champ who won, disappeared and reappeared to win. They even made a movie out of the chess player who was groomed to become the next Fischer.