Haiti’s acting Prime Minister Claude Joseph has agreed to step down and hand over power to Ariel Henry according to information provided by a top government official.
There has been ongoing negotiations between the two on who should lead Haiti following the assassination of Moise on July 7. Henry was appointed as a PM days before Moise’s death, but he did not take office immediately.
Now Henry will become the Prime Minister while Joseph will retain his previous role as the Minister for Foreign Affairs. This is according to information from the Mathias Pierre, the current Elections Minister.
“Negotiations about the composition of the rest of government are still in course, there is no official announcement as of now,” Pierre stated.
On July 5, Henry was named the new Prime Minister. He is a neurologist by training. However, he was never officially sworn in. On Sunday night, Henry released a statement to the Haiti public in which he promised the formation of a new coalition government. Click button to enter email to sign up for CNN’s Meanwhile in America newsletter.
“My fellow Haitians in Haiti and in the diaspora, it is an honor for me to address you as your prime minister. I am calling for all of us to unite and to work together to stop the nation from descending into the abyss,” Henry said in the statement.
“Today, it is our responsibility as leaders to work together to faces our challenges. I know some people are scared and have questions about who is leading the country. We weren’t ready for recent events, but I can assure you that in a very short period of time I will unveil a new coalition government. This government will lead the country for a short period of time until we can hold better elections.”
According to the elections minister, elections are most likely to be held 120 days after Henry is sworn in as prime minister. A conference of civil society groups and activists which met over the weekend with the aim of releasing a plan to create a transitional governmental council that would lead the country. They argue that Haiti, which is riven with gang violence and infrastructural issues, will not be capable of holding free and fair elections this fall.
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