Asset declarations and discharge: ENA asks the CEP to consider former public spending officers

The Entente nationale party (ENA) is asking the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) to take into account the situation of former public spending officers registered for the coming elections. These are people who authorized state spending, such as former ministers or agency heads.

According to party leader and former deputy Antoine Rodon Bien-Aimé, the current electoral decree has legal gaps that could penalize these candidates. At issue are asset declarations and obtaining a certificate of discharge.

A discharge no one can grant

The problem mainly affects former prime ministers and ministers. In a notice published on November 12, the Superior Court of Auditors and Administrative Disputes (CSCCA) said it cannot grant them a discharge in place of Parliament.

Under Article 233 of the Constitution, a 15-member parliamentary commission of nine deputies and six senators reviews their management before both chambers decide. But Haiti has had no sitting Parliament since January 2023.

The CSCCA added that it alone can rule on the accounts of a former official declared a de facto accountant of public funds.

Registration closes Sunday

The CEP has set Sunday, November 15, as the deadline for candidates to register online, at midnight. They then have until November 30 to file their supporting documents. The CEP has not yet responded publicly to ENA's request.