Have the Caricom leaders misjudged the well-meaning intentions expressed by the Haitian stakeholders to give birth to this multi-headed entity known as the Presidential Transition Council? Have they shown naivety? No. To absolve them, it is preferable to believe that they thought by imposing duties on the actors from which they could not escape, given the depth of the crisis, they would clothe themselves in statesmanlike robes and establish a legitimacy beyond any partisan suspicion. Like them, considering the country's sinking under Henry and the collapse of all our institutions, I wanted to believe, albeit with doubt, in the credibility of the PTC. I have known some of the personalities within it for a long time, and their qualities seemed to me to guarantee thoughtful governance. Was this hope illusory? The shadows quickly marred the picture. It was then that I remembered what Machiavelli wrote five centuries ago: "Men willingly change masters, thinking they will find better." The disillusionment underlying this adage became apparent.

The members of the Council took their oath on April 25th, swearing to work for the greatness of the Fatherland. Although the value of the words of our political actors is almost always questionable, I did not expect such a rapid outbreak of personal and partisan ambitions that seem to poison relations among the counselors, and which undoubtedly explains the timid advances and the disorderly actions of an executive that pulls in different directions. The members of the PTC show no willingness to apply their own rules. They even put up barriers to slow down the process of setting up the government outlined in the roadmap. Are they treading in Ariel Henry's footsteps? At this rate, the Council risks quickly becoming rusty.