While the Council of Ministers had adopted the draft decree on the creation and functioning of the Presidential Council on Wednesday evening, stakeholders who have designated representatives to the Presidential Council now want to harmonize the draft decree with the political agreement. This implies modifications to the document already approved by the Council of Ministers.
Government members worked very late into the evening on Wednesday, April 3, to finalize the draft decree on the creation and functioning of the Presidential Council. "We have adopted the document. Before its publication in Le Moniteur, it will undergo a final review," a government member told Le Nouvelliste on Wednesday evening.
Less than 24 hours after the decree was adopted by the Council of Ministers, Le Nouvelliste learned from several sources within the Presidential Council that stakeholders who have designated representatives to the Presidential Council are now attempting to harmonize the draft decree with the political agreement.
"The decree establishing the Presidential Council and the political agreement will be combined into a single decree for publication in Le Moniteur," a member of the Presidential Council informed Le Nouvelliste during a meeting between presidential advisors and political actors.
"The stakeholders who have designated representatives to the Presidential Council, along with us presidential advisors, are working to harmonize the two documents," they added, emphasizing that everything will be signed by the actors this Friday.
According to several presidential advisors contacted by Le Nouvelliste on Thursday, it seems they were not aware of the decree being adopted by the Council of Ministers on Wednesday evening. "The harmonization of the two documents involves modifications to the texts," they indicated.
"A part of the decree establishing the Presidential Council that we had sent to CARICOM was not in line with the framework agreement. That's why we need to harmonize the two documents," emphasized a member of the Presidential Council to the newspaper.
"The final document (decree establishing the Presidential Council and the political agreement) will be submitted to the Council of Ministers this Friday for further legal steps," our source informed the newspaper.
Another member of the Council of Ministers contacted by Le Nouvelliste on Thursday believes that stakeholders who have designated representatives to the Presidential Council are interfering too much in the work of presidential advisors. "They are questioning the work we had already done in the decree on the creation and functioning of the Presidential Council. There is a lot of delay and time wasted on every point," they criticized.
Some members of the Presidential Council hope to see the decree published in Le Moniteur before the weekend so that presidential advisors can be installed at the National Palace on Monday, April 8. A source close to the National Palace told Le Nouvelliste that the palace premises are regularly under attack by gangs and that no arrangements have yet been made to accommodate members of the Presidential Council.