Port-Au-Prince: Haiti`s soon-to-expire parliament has approved the creation of a commission co-chaired by former US President Bill Clinton to oversee billions in post-quake reconstruction aid, the Ministry of
Communications has said.
The vote was widely sought by international donors who want a high degree of foreign control over an estimated USD 5.3 billion pledged for 2010-11 at a March 31 United Nations conference.
Thirteen senators voted for the legislative package in a late session Thursday night, Communications Minister Marie-Laurence Jocelyn Lassegue said. Already approved by the lower house, it now goes to President Rene Preval for enactment.
The vote extends Haiti`s post-earthquake state of emergency for 18 months, leaving the billions delivered in that time to be overseen by the Interim Haiti Reconstruction Commission led by Clinton, who is the UN special envoy to Haiti, and Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive.
Preval will have veto power over the commission`s decisions. His support was key: Twelve of the 13 yes-votes came from members of his newly formed Unity Party. One senator voted against the package and two abstained. Eleven senators were absent.
It is likely the last significant action parliament will take before most senators` and deputies` terms expire next month. Elections planned for February were cancelled because of the earthquake and have not been rescheduled.
PTI
