Task Force, War Budget: The Executive's Forgotten Major Announcements?

As insecurity continues to paralyze economic, social, and political activities in Haiti, many voices are rising to question the prolonged silence surrounding the famous Task Force created by the Prime Minister's Office. Highlighted at the peak of the security crisis, this structure seemed to embody a desire by the Haitian authorities to regain control. However, several months after its grand announcement, the Task Force has evaporated into institutional fog. An announcement full of unfulfilled promises? It was last March, in the wake of extreme violence orchestrated by armed groups, that the Prime Minister's Office announced the establishment of a crisis Task Force, responsible for coordinating the government's security actions in response to the deteriorating situation. The objective: to ensure better synergy between law enforcement, local authorities, international partners, and to prepare a “robust and structured” response plan. But since this announcement, little to no information has filtered out. No progress reports, no press conferences, no evaluation of its work. The few ministers questioned on the matter seem embarrassed, and the Prime Minister's Office Communication Bureau remains silent. The famous “war budget”: reality or political marketing? In the same vein, the President of the CPT had mentioned a “war budget,” intended to mobilize exceptional resources to strengthen the capacities of the Haitian National Police (PNH), improve intelligence, secure strategic routes, relocate displaced populations, and finance the reconstruction of certain public services destroyed or controlled by gangs. Yet, here again, no details have been communicated regarding the actual amount, the budget lines involved, the donors solicited, or the monitoring mechanisms. While some police operations have occurred sporadically, they seem far from a global and coordinated war strategy. Several national experts even mention the absence of this famous “war budget” in official public documents. Demand for an assessment In his correspondence addressed to the Prime Minister on July 9, a copy of which was deliberately given to the press even before being sent to the recipient, the President of the Transitional Council requests an update on several issues, particularly the assessment of the task force. Considered one of the extraordinary measures taken to combat insecurity, the task force has proven ineffective, with no gang leaders neutralized. None! An attitude that annoys Fritz Alphonse Jean, urging Alix Didier Fils-Aimé to provide “information capable of enabling the CPT to analyze and assess the expected results of initiatives taken in relation to the resources committed for the operation of the task force.” According to the proponent of the war budget, this request for information is made with a view to producing a comprehensive security assessment, so that the best decisions can be made for the benefit of the population. A legitimate request for a country that suffers all day long. Political communication without follow-up? For many observers, these announcements are more of a communication operation aimed at reassuring a desperate population and containing international pressure. “The Task Force? It is very ineffective. It was just a decoy. The war budget? Caught in a grey area.” Furthermore, the lack of transparency and public reporting fuels mistrust. For a population that daily endures the torments of insecurity — assassinations, kidnappings, forced displacements — this opacity is experienced as a betrayal. A need for clarity and action At a time when the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM) is timidly establishing itself on the ground, clarity around national commitments becomes more crucial than ever. Haitians want to know: who is coordinating the response? Where are the allocated funds going? What is the crisis exit strategy? The time for slogans seems to be over. Now, concrete results, quantified assessments, and accountability are expected. Without these, any stabilization strategy — both internal and international — risks losing its legitimacy in the eyes of an already exhausted population. Gesly J. Sinvilier