ARTICLE - BEHAVIOR OF SENATORS

IRRESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOR OF SOME SENATORS
(Haiti Libre) -

14 days after the ratification vote of the 2011-2012 budget by the Lower House (5 months after the end of the fiscal year), the plenary session of the Senate convened this Thursday, April 26th, which was to have voted on the 2011-2012 budget. This has been postponed to May 2, for lack of a quorum!

Simon Dieuseul Desras, President of the Senate deplored the impossibility of obtaining the presence of 16 senators, the quorum required for a plenary session; while 28 Senators were available. For Senator Desras, his colleagues, have no excuses; reminding them the urgency of this vote to prevent the State from being blocked, urging them to fulfill their constitutional duty, and reminding them that the internal regulations of the upper house, provide for sanctions against absenteeism.

Despite the calls for a respect of their duty, and the threats of sanctions, the President of the Senate has failed to convince a sufficient number of Senators to obtain the quorum required by the Constitution. The senators present at the Legislative Building, were simply sulking at the session, forcing the postponement of the vote, essential to the functioning of the state, to the next plenary session on May 2, 2012, or six days before the end of the term of one third of the senators of the upper house.

There is hope that such an... irresponsible situation does not happen again on May 2; that our senators will recover the sense of duty, and stop using any vote as a means of pressure on the executive... because, after May 8, a quorum of the Senate is cut of 10 of its members, and it is likely to be even more difficult and announces a difficult period...