Legislative

Senator Benoit Suspicious of National Fund for Education

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (defend.ht) – The Senator of the Ouest, Steven Benoit, heard allegations that Deputies of the Parliament had accepted $27,000 each to vote in favor of the Prime Minister-designate, Dr. Garry Conille, and is the reason behind the nearly unanimous vote in the lower house. Benoit suspects the possibility of scandal in the president's National Fund for Education and has likened it to corruption.

In a radio interview on Vision 2000 radio, the Chairman of the Senate Ethics & Anti-Corruption Committee, Senator Benoit, shared information that the amount of $27,000 per deputy are to be budgeted to fund the education of 300 children in each deputy’s commune. For senators, the means to educate 1,000 children would be given or $90,000.

Steven Benoit, much to his dismay, admitted to having no information regarding the National Fund for Education. Benoit says no one knows who is handling the money, how much has been raised or how it is being distributed.

On Vision 2000, Senator Benoit spoke directly to all the parliamentarians who would have accepted such monies, requiring them to maintain a list of:

- names of the students the parliamentarian's office is funding
- the school that the students will be attending
- and exactly what classes the students will be sitting in.

Furthermore, Senator Benoit feels the taxes being levied on international calls and international money transfers is illegal. Benoit says there are only two institutions legally allowed to recover taxes and that is the Directorate General of Taxes (DGI) and the nation's customs agency, AGD.

Senator Benoit and President Martelly

The bulk of the audio recording is regarding a political battle in which President Michel Martelly is identifying Senator Benoit as a candidate for president in 2015.

Benoit informs radio listeners that he it is not that he does not like the president but is asking that things be done to form and in order.

These are part of a list of 12 "excesses" that the Senator of the Ouest has declared a mismanagement of the executive branch by the presidency. The list includes:

- failure to amend the constitution
- failure to establish a 'Permanent' Electoral Council
- failure to execute the seats of 4 deputies, still outstanding since May 30 elections
- and failure to pursue closure on $4 billion [US] that were disbursed by the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission (CIRH) but effects not felt.

For a brief moment Senator Benoit also called his exception to the fact that a document regarding the remobilization of the Armed Forces of Haiti was distributed to the Ambassadors of the United States and Canada but not brought before the parliament for debate.

Senator Benoit calls the Spokesman for the Presidency, Lucien Jura's attempt to explain the leak of the document entitled "National Security and Defense Policy: The Great Priorities" as an attempt to defend the indefensible.

Related 09.29.2011: Senator Latortue on the Side of Caution in Forming an Army
Related 09.28.2011: President Martelly Plans for Haitian Security Forces Leaked
Related 09.28.2011: Senator Joseph Lambert Would Welcome an Appointment in Martelly Government
Related 09.27.2011: Sen. Steven Benoit Loses Confidence in the Head of State
Related 09.27.2011: Senate Resolution Aims to End U.N. Peacekeeping Mission by October 2012