Haitian prime minister’s spokesperson holds first press conference on the PM activities

By Arnold Junior Pierre

PORT-AU-PRINCE—Jean Jul Désauguste, Prime Minister Garry Conille’s newly appointed spokesperson, held his first press conference Friday. During his meeting with the press, Conille’s communications advisor gave an overview of the Prime Minister’s activities since arriving in Haiti last weekend, following his appointment by the Transitional Presidential Council (CPT) to lead the transitional government.

Désauguste, a former journalist for Radio Métropole, used the Creole proverb “Bourik chaje pa kanpe” (In English, a loaded donkey can’t stop) to emphasize the urgency with which the new Prime Minister is addressing Haiti’s challenges and aiming to lead the nation toward peace, security and democratic restoration.

“Upon his arrival in the Haitian capital on June 1, Prime Minister Conille hit the ground running,” Désauguste told a small pool of reporters at the Prime Minister’s official residence in Port-au-Prince. “Dr. Conille visited downtown Port-au-Prince and inspected shelter centers to assess the situation and living conditions of those displaced by armed gang conflicts,” he added.

Despite being engaged in cabinet formation consultations and negotiations, Conille took time to meet with high-ranking officials of the Haitian National Police (PNH) and Haiti’s Armed Forces (FAd’H) high command. He also met with representatives from Digicel and Natcom, the country’s two major telecommunications operators, to discuss the security crisis’ impact on their operations. 

Conille’s optimism and obstacles

Despite the challenges, Désauguste expressed the Prime Minister’s optimism and determination to collaborate with all sectors of the nation to address Haiti’s multidimensional crisis. He reaffirmed Conille’s commitment to forming an inclusive government that reflects the aspirations of the Haitian people, who have long suffered from insecurity, political instability and socio-economic crises.

However, according to sources close to him who spoke on condition of anonymity to the Haitian Times on Thursday night, Conille has faced some significant hurdles. The Prime Minister has encountered resistance from the CPT over logistical details—such as the missed formal installation that would give him the power to officially sign documents—and his vision of staffing the government with technocrats rather than favoring cronies.

According to the sources, Conille is considering consolidating the government’s 18 ministries into a maximum of 13 and reducing the staff in each ministry’s cabinet from the current 15 to a maximum of seven. Despite opposition from some CPT members who presented lists of job candidates, comprising mostly political allies, Conille insists on appointing at least three of his choices to top cabinet posts.

Late on Thursday, local media outlets reported that CPT members agreed with Conille’s proposal to reduce the number of ministries and cabinet personnel. However, negotiations over details were still ongoing on Friday. Despite rumors that the government would be installed by the end of the day, this did not happen. For the installation to occur, the CPT must first issue a decree naming the ministers, as they did for Conille.

Sources from the CPT and the Prime Minister’s Office have indicated that the details would be finalized by the beginning of next week, and the new government installation is scheduled for June 12.

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