By Youri Kemp From Caribbean News Now

PORT-AU PRINCE, Haiti — Almost a month after the Haitian fuel-price subsidy riots that caused previous Haitian prime minister, Jack Guy Lafontant, to resign his position, President Jovenel Moïse has appointed Jean-Henry Céant to become the new prime minister of Haiti.

Moïse made the announcement of selecting Céant on Twitter: “After consultations with the presidents of the two branches of Parliament, I made the choice of citizen @jeanhenryceant as new prime minister.”

Céant, who was also a presidential candidate in the 2016 Haitian elections, comes in at a time where anger and resentment over the fuel-price subsidy removal is still fresh in the mind of Haitians.

The fuel-price subsidy removal, which was reversed by his predecessor Lafontant shortly before resigning his post or facing an all but certain expulsion through a vote of no confidence, is still an issue Haiti is grappling with, as the costs of continuing the subsidy far outweigh spending on healthcare, the World Bank estimated in its 2014 report on the Haitian post-earthquake recovery efforts.

Some three days after the riots began the removal of the fuel subsidy was reversed; however, not before causing a significant amount of damage to central Port-au-Prince and other upscale areas in central Haiti, including businesses, hotels and affluent residences and streets.

Céant has limited experience in public and government administration, but has been a part of, or has founded or co-founded several social charities and socially conscious organisations in Haiti and is very active in Haitian civil society.

A lawyer by profession with some accounting and management experience in both the public and private civil sectors, he has also taught law as well as being a prominent figure on the Haitian Diaspora speaking circuit over the course of his career.

There is no word on how Céant’s cabinet will take shape, and who will be appointed to which ministries. It is expected that these appointments will come shortly as his appointment is already confirmed, with ratification by the Chamber of Deputies expected to be a perfunctory matter.

Céant’s predecessor, Lafontant, who many regarded as someone who lacked the public administrative experience to handle the job of prime minister, a very important and integral part of the government, is out of government altogether and there is no word if he will serve in another capacity outside of cabinet.

Many observers also blamed Lafontant’s tone-deafness to the plight of every day Haitians and his eagerness to appease the International Monetary Fund and abide by its request to remove the fuel price subsidy put in place after the 2010 earthquake.

Céant, who also has training in economics, will be faced with similar challenges and requests by international agencies like the IMF and others to bring Haiti out of the perpetual state of poverty and blight it has endured for nearly 50 years, to continue the rebuilding exercises post-2010 earthquake, in addition to post-2016 Hurricane Matthew.

IMAGE: Jean-Henry Céant

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