Asset Declaration: Mario ANDRÉSOL Obeys the Law, but Transparency Remains a Haitian Ordeal

This Friday, April 10, 2026, the Minister of Defense, Mario ANDRÉSOL, filed his asset declaration with the Anti-Corruption Unit (ULCC), on the occasion of the 4th edition of the dedicated Day. An act compliant with the law of February 20, 2008, which the minister summarized with a simple phrase: « The law obliges, I obey. » Yet, behind this displayed obedience, the question arises of the real effectiveness of public asset control in Haiti.

The scene was intended to be exemplary. In the ULCC premises, the Minister of Defense filed his asset declaration, a gesture required by law for any high-ranking official within thirty days of taking office, and then within thirty days after leaving. Mario ANDRÉSOL even insisted on the « constitutional » nature of this requirement, promising to renew the exercise at the end of his mandate. On paper, there's nothing to criticize: a minister who obeys the law and proclaims his commitment to « transparency, probity, and good governance ».

But this individual act is part of a much more troubled national context. The 2008 law on asset declaration has existed for eighteen years, but its application remains sporadic, often symbolic. The ULCC itself, supposed to control the veracity of declarations and sanction falsehoods, chronically lacks resources and real independence. Each year, dozens of high-ranking officials submit their forms, but few are subjected to in-depth checks. Even rarer are prosecutions for illicit enrichment. In this vacuum, asset declaration sometimes becomes a mere administrative formality, closer to communication than control.

Minister ANDRÉSOL chose a laconic phrase: « The law obliges, I obey. » He cannot be blamed for complying. But obeying the law is the minimum. The real test will come later: what will he do when the ULCC or the press wants to compare his end-of-mandate declaration with his real situation? The promise to « renew this exercise » is encouraging, but it is only valid if the oversight institution has the means to authenticate declared assets, verify bank accounts, land, vehicles, and changes in assets.

Furthermore, the event is intended as an « Asset Declaration Day », its 4th edition. This is institutional progress. But one day is not enough when systemic corruption erodes the state. Haitian citizens, accustomed to embezzlement scandals, ministers with no declared assets, or fanciful declarations, are no longer satisfied with isolated gestures. They expect cross-checks, non-anonymized publications (while respecting privacy), and exemplary sanctions in cases of fraud.

Ultimately, Mario ANDRÉSOL has fulfilled his legal duty. This is good news. But in Haiti, where distrust of the political class is at its peak, transparency is not decreed: it is proven. The true evaluation of this declaration will take place in a few months, when the ULCC publishes (or not) its conclusions, and when citizens can see that the law is not just a text that is invoked, but a commitment that is applied. Until then, the minister's phrase resonates like a litany: « The law obliges, I obey. » Let's hope that obedience is not only that of the declarant, but also that of the system that must control him.