Haiti wakes up this morning with new prime minister

By Gary JosephCSMS Magazine Staff WriterPort-au-Prince—CSMS Magazine has learned that Ericq Pierre, 63, an economist with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in Washington was named Prime Minister Designee. The announcement was made official to several news organizations in the Haitian capital on Sunday by Senate president Kelly Bastien and the president of the lower House of Parliament, Pierre-Eric Jean-Jacques.     This nomination came amid violence and intimidation that rocked the country over the last couple weeks and that left one Nigerian peacekeeper dead and three Sri Lankans soldiers wounded—the first major crisis to paralyze the country since Préval was elected president of the impoverished nation in February 2006. The nomination still has to be ratified by the Haitian Parliament.      This latest move is nothing but a sneaky attempt to pacify a population exhausted with humiliation, starvation and virtual abandonment by a government elected to lift it from misery to poverty with dignity. Préval has also announced a plan to bring down rice prices by cutting the cost of a 50-kilogram (110-pound) bag of rice that had doubled to 70 dollars within a week, by eight dollars, or 15 percent. The Haitian president has been saying this for days now, and the fact nothing has changed, it is proof that the racketeers who control the market are either not afraid or have tied their interests with the nouveaux riches at the highest echelon of the state bureaucracy.      Many believe that Préval’s move falls perfectly in line with the strategy of buying time in the face mounting pressure from the disenfranchised masses, wallowing in hellish conditions.     According to Agence France Presse (AFP), the nomination came about after “serous” consultations between Préval and the political class, where a consensus has emerged.     According to Radio Métropole, Evans Paul, the leader of the Democratic Alliance and Micha Gaillard, leader of Fusion—a coalition of leftist groupings—have already given their blessings, including Lavalas leaders of the Haitian Parliament.     Ericq Pierre’s task as PM is to rapidly put in application the core of the economic program set by DSNCRP (Strategic National Document for the Improvement and Reduction of Poverty). It is said that this document will be Pierre’s guide as he prepares to tackle the country’s dire economic situation.     Meanwhile an OAS delegation led by its secretary general, Miguel Inzulsa, was in the Haitian capital on Friday. The OAS delegation has met with Préval, with representatives of the Haitian Parliaments, members of the bourgeoisie and leaders of the political class. Inzulsa has declared that he is “optimistic about the future and things will start getting better in the coming days.” His declaration was reinforced by the Canadian ambassador, Claude Boucher and European Union representative, Francesco Gosseti. The Spanish foreign minister, Miguel Angel Moratinos, was also in the Haitian capital in a 24-hour visit in which he announced that the Spanish government has released 1.5 million Euro in order to boost the national economy.    All these diplomatic maneuverings will definitely set to fail because Haiti needs drastic changes to turn things around, not cosmetic ploys designed to pacify an angry population.       Also see: High Noon for René Préval in HaitiRene Prevsl takes officeHaiti: the lies will never endWill Haiti Ever Regain Its Sanity?Will Haiti ever achieve responsible governance?