Tuesday, March 6, 2012

ARTICLE - LAMONTHE - NATIONALITY

THE INVESTIGATION OF THE NATIONALITY OF LAURENT LAMOTHE DELAYING THE RATIFICATION PROCESS
(Haiti Libre) -

While President Martelly has designated Laurent Lamothe as his choice for the next Prime Minister, on March 1, the Ratification Commissions of both houses are still not constituted... The Senate is attempting to obtain a letter from Laurent Lamothe authorizing the Senate Committee of Inquiry on the nationality of members of the Government, to request information on his nationality, from foreign ambassadors, and discuss in a Conference of Presidents, resolutions concerning the long list of preconditions for a possible ratification; of which the vote will allow to know if the ratification will move forward or not...

Senator Simon Dieuseul Desras, President of the Senate declared "...we will discuss this correspondence at the Conference of Presidents, and it is following this conference that we'll know Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday what will be decided [...] I can tell you as a Senator that the procedure can continue, conditionally if Laurent Lamothe signs a letter authorizing foreign Ambassadors to give information about his nationality, to clarify and facilitate the work of the Commission [...] Perhaps the Commission is able to give us a preliminary report, so that we know exactly what direction we should take [...] I think this is an urgent matter, because the country can not remain without a government [...] Does the Commission deal with it as an emergency? I do not know [...] Following our rules, we must also appoint a Commission to study the case of the Prime Minister, but since there are draft resolutions... it will depend on discussions and votes on these resolutions [...] We have not yet reached the stage of knowing whether the final resolution asks us to move forward or to stop..."

For his part, Deputy Levaillant Louis Jeune, President of the Lower House is awaiting the report of the Senate Committee on Nationality "...we see the issue in two ways, and we explained to the President that the Chamber of Deputies can not do anything, because Mr. Laurent Lamothe is under investigation in the Senate. It is necessary that the Senate has a report, [...] that says they have looked at the file and that it is correct. At that time we can begin, but currently we can not do anything [...]"

In this world of uncertainty, the second Senator of the South East, Wencesclass Lambert seems to be an exception; convinced from the documents submitted to the Senate Committee, that Laurent Lamothe is Haitian. He is very optimistic regarding his ratification. "Laurent Lamothe is a foreign minister that has shown the world that he has the ability to drive a real public policy [...] Mr. Lamothe has sold Haiti in another way. He has boosted diplomacy. Many people have been going through this position, and did not produce what he produces. All parliamentarians who are lucid, that have Republican visions, who make judgments of what a State authority has produced, well I think that they will walk in the Lamothe logic[...] To my knowledge from what I have in my hands as documents [submitted to the Senate Committee on the issue of dual citizenship], he is Haitian [...] I'm sure that Laurent Lamothe will pass in the Senate with 20 votes or 22 [...] I made an overview at the lower House. They have some sympathy for him. I'm sure that he will pass with ease..."

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