Last Updated on March 3, 2020, 2:52 AM AST by Anthony Morris
On Monday, Haiti got a piece of big news when the current Haitian president Jovenel Moise named a new prime minister keeping in mind, the need to tackle the country’s degrading social, political and security conditions which have been facing a crisis.
Jovenel Moise, on his official Twitter channel, said that he consulted various sectors before making the decision. After all the consultation and consideration, He has decided that Joute Joseph should be named as the new Prime Minister.
He said that the Prime Minister is tasked with forming a stable, transparent government which shall be able to face the challenges of the present times and shall constitute the government as soon as possible.
It is to be noted that Joseph has been the environment minister for the country since September of 2018. was also appointed as the interim minister of the Economy and Finance in September 2019.
He will replace Jean-Michel Lapin, who had been acting as the Prime Minister.
Since the resignation of Prime Minister Jean-Henry Ceant, there have been two other appointments to the post and Joseph is the third person who has been appointed to the post since the resignation.
Ever since the resignation of Prime Minister Jean-Henry Ceant Haiti has been in a situation of crisis.
The legislature of the country has never approved of any of the nominees of Jovenel Moise, and this has been a blockade in the path of the government’s ability to work.
Due to this, Parliament has not been in session since the month of January, and the same is the reason due to which elections could not take place in the last autumn.
The Political talks that began last summer in order to find a way to form a new government proved out to be a futile effort and brought no solution. This has lead to a demand by the opposition that Moise should step down from his post before any further discussion can even be initiated.
Jovenel Moise has faced widespread anger ever since the High Court of Accounts in May 2019 announced that Moise was suspected of being involved in a massive corruption scandal that dates back to about a decade.
The never-ending crisis has hit hard on the brakes on domestic and international investment and has lead to massive unemployment. The country is also facing a severe form of running inflation with the inflation rate topping 20 per cent.
The crisis has made the poverty-stricken nation even poorer.
One-third of the total population of the nation now faces severe food insecurity and the nation is at the last stage before the famine.
The whole situation has lead to an increase in the crime rates in the poorer neighbourhoods. There has been a sudden sharp increase in the number of kidnappings for ransom along with a rise in the usual gang-related violence.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
