Haiti’s president defends appointment of prime minister
PORT AU PRINCE (CMC) — Interim Haitian president Jocelerme Privert has dismissed opposition claims that he appointed Fritz-Alphonse Jean as prime minister in violation of a Feb. 6 agreement.
He said that he held discussions with the presidents of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies and as a result of the meetings Jean was nominated for the post.
Earlier this week, the Tet Kale Haitian Party political party of former president Michel Martelly criticised Privert over his selection of a prime minister saying that it was done in violation of the February 6 accord.
Leaders of the PHTK told a news conference that Privert’s decision to appoint a fellow member of his own party as the new provisional prime minister was also in violation of the agreement and could deepen the country’s long-standing political crisis.
Scientists stunned by two rising lakes in Haiti and Dominican Republic
Lake Azuéi in Haiti and Lake Enriquillo in the Dominican Republic have encroached on thousands of acres of land in recent years, according to National Geographic, swallowing up lands that are home to thousands. Generally, the impacts of climate change cause the seas to rise, but lakes are expected to shrink. As the years go on, that’s not what residents and experts have seen in these two locations, the Weather Channel reported.
“At first we put rocks so it wouldn’t come into our houses,” Alberto Pierre, a Haitian who was pushed from his home by the rising Lake Azuéi, told National Geographic. “But then the water just overran the rocks.”
Experts have traveled from all over the world to study these two lakes, but they haven’t been able to draw any conclusions about why the water is rising, the report added. While they work to figure it out, residents in the region flee to higher ground – some, permanently – to escape the higher waters.
Interim president vows to clean up Port-au-Prince
Last week interim-president Jocelerme Privert held a meeting with officials to discuss sanitation cleaning efforts in Port-au-Prince.
I’m aware that the city is dirty, Privert said, everywhere there are piles of garbage. Privert called on construction companies that have contracts with the State to assist with garbage collection.
“From tomorrow (Saturday), I can announce that the major construction companies will participate in garbage collection with their equipment,” he said.