The presidential council has still not managed to put an end to its internal crisis and find some serenity. The latest position of the 30 collective against the rotating presidency is an illustration of this.
Speaking this Tuesday, May 14 on the program Le Rendez-vous avec Volcy Assad, the Executive Director of the National Network for the Defense of Human Rights (RNDDH) Pierre Espérant revealed that the international community has already considered a plan B to replace the Council in the event that these negotiations and political maneuvers continue within the presidential council. Pierre Espérance calls on the members of the transitional body to respect the terms of the April 3 agreement so as not to lose everything and be replaced by another plan.
In this interview, Pierre Espérance launched an urgent appeal to the members of the Presidential Transitional Council, urging them to respect the terms of the April 3 agreement. This agreement, essential for political stability and governance in Haiti, stipulates the commitments and actions that the CPT must take to ensure a successful transition and ease political tensions in the country.
Espérance stressed that non-compliance with this agreement could lead to serious consequences, including the implementation of Plan B by the international community. This plan B is considered, according to him, because of the mafia sectors which lurk around the council and which wish to take it hostage.
To the members of the CPT, Espérance warned that they risk “losing everything” if they fail to comply with the commitments made.
According to the human rights activist, the greatest non-compliance with the April 3 agreement remains the way in which Edgard Leblanc Fils was appointed president of the CPT. Pierre Espérance believes that it was a Coup d’Etat against the very agreement of April 3. For him, there was no consensus.
The designation of Leblanc was made by a majority which was reached within the council. The collective of January 30, Pitit Desalin, RED/EDE and the agreement of December 21. Bitter against these groups, Espérance accuses some of them of having “squandered the state coffers, of involvement in Petrocaribe and the gangsterization of the country”. He believes that advisors must free themselves from these structures to have the agreement of April 3 as a compass.
For Espérance, the political negotiations and maneuvers within the CPT do not bode well. The activist does not understand why the council took a resolution on a rotating presidency and that on May 13, the January 30 collective expressed its disagreement with the approach asking that Edgard Leblanc assume the presidency throughout the transition. This position puts their representative, he says, in a difficult situation.
More than one wonders whether or not Leblanc supports the collective’s change of heart. Espérance says he hopes that the leader of the OPL is not involved, otherwise the Presidential Council would have to dismiss him as president.
Pierre Espérance did not mince his words in describing the current situation as being exceptionally serious. He insisted on the fact that presidential advisers must concentrate their efforts on “major urgent projects” for the country. These major projects include crucial political and institutional reforms, strengthening security, the fight against corruption and the establishment of favorable conditions for free and transparent elections.
Although Pierre Espérance did not give specific details on the nature of this plan B, it is clear that alternatives are ready to be deployed if the CPT fails to fulfill its obligations. He says the preparation of a Plan B would result from growing frustration among international partners over internal squabbles hampering the work of the presidential council.
The April 3 agreement is the key document of the presidential council. It includes clear commitments to strengthen governance, ensure public safety and organize for democratic elections, among others.
By: Daniel Zéphyr
