The Prime Minister of Mauritius has accepted that his coalition, L'Alliance Lepep, has suffered a major defeat following Sunday's parliamentary elections.
“People have decided to choose another party,” Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth told reporters on Monday.
Jugnauth was seeking a second five-year term, but his main rival, Navin Ramgoolam, leader of the Alliance of Change coalition, looks set to become the next leader of the Indian Ocean archipelago.
Mauritius is known as one of the most stable democracies in Africa but the election was marred by the wiretapping scandal and the leaking of public records posted online.
In response, the government issued a ban on social media until after the election, although this led to debate and the decision was reversed within 24 hours.
The final results are yet to be released but Ramgoolam's team looks set to win.
“We must respect this choice… and we wish the country and the people luck,” said Jugnauth.
The vote comes after a landmark deal in which the UK relinquished sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
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