Counselor Smith Augustin ruled out the possibility of resigning from his position within the Presidential Transition Council, despite a letter from the National Political Bureau (BPN) of the EDE party urging him to make a "wise decision" to facilitate the success of the transition. Smith Augustin, Louis Gérald Gilles, and Emmanuel Vertilaire are accused of soliciting bribes from the outgoing chairman of the National Credit Bank (BNC) to help him retain his position.

In an interview with the newspaper, Smith Augustin emphasized that the call for his resignation did not come from the party’s leaders as such. "The (new) Secretary General is the only leader who signed this letter. However, he lacks the legitimacy to do so as he has just been appointed. I am part of the Strategic Council which has not reacted. That said, this is not the party's position in itself. This letter is the initiative of a small group that is being manipulated to legitimize the position of a minority trying to impose itself," Smith Augustin responded.