Crisis at the Top: The CPT Plans to Dismiss Prime Minister Fils-Aimé Despite Washington's Warning

Port-au-Prince.— A new institutional escalation occurred overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday within the Transitional Presidential Council (CPT), with the signing, very late in the evening, of a resolution ending the functions of Prime Minister Alix-Didier Fils-Aimé. The act, considered decisive in the internal balance of power, was completed when council-president Smith Augustin affixed his signature, bringing the number of council members in favor of the dismissal to five, which is the qualified majority required out of the seven CPT members. This resolution comes in an electric diplomatic climate. A few hours earlier, the United States Embassy in Haiti had published a note warning against any modification of the composition of the outgoing government. Washington warned that such a step, deemed null and void by the embassy, could jeopardize international efforts to achieve, what the USA calls, a minimal level of security and stability in the country. For several council members, this message was perceived as an attempt at direct interference in a process falling under Haitian institutional sovereignty. By disregarding this pressure, Smith Augustin confirmed a now acknowledged fault line within the transition. Politically, Fils-Aimé is no longer Prime Minister With this signature, the die is cast: Alix-Didier Fils-Aimé is technically no longer Prime Minister. The CPT will have to formalize its decision and appoint an interim head of government before the formation of a replacement executive, under penalty of exacerbating the already chronic instability of the state apparatus. An Explosive Debate on Sovereignty and Power The resolution revives an older debate: that of national sovereignty versus American influence at pivotal moments in Haitian politics. Several observers see this as a major turning point, especially as the CPT's mandate expires on February 7, leaving uncertainty about the post-transition period. In the political arena, criticism was swift. According to human rights defender Pierre Espérance, the signatory council members, including Smith Augustin, Louis Gérald Gilles, Leslie Voltaire, Fritz Alphonse Jean, and Edgard Leblanc, are primarily seeking to seize power in order to make key replacements at the head of strategic institutions such as the Haitian National Police (PNH) or the Anti-Corruption Unit (ULCC). Pierre Espérance called for securing the Villa d’Accueil and blocking what he describes as an attempt at institutional capture. The council members concerned, for their part, reject any attempt at a conspiracy theory interpretation and affirm that they are acting strictly within the constitutional prerogatives of the Presidential Council. Indeed, this standoff occurs as the country dangerously approaches the February 7 deadline, set for the end of mandates stemming from the April 3 Agreement. No consensual roadmap has yet emerged, neither on the formation of a new executive nor on the organization of elections, in a context where insecurity and institutional fragmentation complicate any political anticipation. Jean Mapou / Le Relief