Haiti’s Unit for Combating Corruption has accused three members of the country’s transitional presidential council of demanding over $750,000 in bribes from the government-owned National Bank of Credit director. The investigation, which threatens to destabilize Haiti’s fragile political stability, named Smith Augustin, Emmanuel Vertilaire, and Louis Gérald Gilles as the officials implicated in the scheme on Wednesday, October 2nd. This report is a significant blow to the nine-member council, which was appointed earlier this year to help manage the country following the resignation of the former prime minister amid rampant gang violence.
The allegations center around a meeting on May 25, organized by Gilles, during which the bribe demand was made to the bank director, Raoul Pascal Pierre-Louis. The meeting took place in a hotel in Port-au-Prince, where officials allegedly confiscated the attendees’ phones before the discussions. Pierre-Louis later informed authorities, including Prime Minister Garry Conille, about the demand. Unable to meet the request for the cash, Pierre-Louis instead proposed offering lines of credit.
As a result, four lines of credit were allegedly arranged for the officials involved, with three for up to $20,000 each and a fourth for $13,500. All three council members now face criminal charges of corruption. The council members denied the accusations, with Vertilaire stating that it would be “absurd” to demand money from someone he had only met for the first time during the discussions.
This scandal is expected to erode public trust in the transitional council, which had been working alongside new Prime Minister Conille to restore governance in the country. Despite Haiti’s long history of impunity, the anti-corruption agency has vowed to hold those responsible accountable. A judge is expected to review the case and possibly issue arrest warrants based on the findings.
