Police officers standing guard near the grounds of the National Palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. — Getty Images/AFP
ON the surface, it looked like a reasonable security proposal: extend the perimeter around Haiti’s National Palace, replace ageing weapons and add more officers to guard against gang attacks.
But the acquisition request submitted late last year by the police officer overseeing the presidential security units has sparked far deeper concerns.
The documents called for a stockpile large enough to equip a small army: 10 million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, five million rounds of 5.56mm, 2,300 assault rifles and sniper units, thousands of police uniforms, 12 armoured vehicles, a 12-seat armoured transport for dignitaries and a convoy of 23 tactical vehicles – including three armoured Toyota Land Cruisers for the commander’s personal use.
Pierre-Louis Cange submitted the request shortly after his appointment in November as presidential security coordinator.
It also included a monthly cash allowance of US$23,000 in “working capital” and another US$76,400 for “intelligence gathering”, according to sources who asked to remain anonymous.
Cange said the reinforcements were needed ahead of Feb 7 – the constitutional end of presidential mandates and the date the Transitional Presidential Council is expected to relinquish power.
But politicians and foreign diplomats are asking whether this was an overzealous wishlist, or a calculated move to seize control of the palace, Haiti’s enduring symbol of state authority.
“I don’t know his real intentions,” said a government official. “But it seems that he wants to be able to control who comes and goes inside the palace on Feb 7.”
Though the National Palace collapsed in the 2010 earthquake, gang control of downtown Port-au-Prince has forced the council to work out of the old prime minister’s office. Yet the palace remains a potent symbol of power, and its potential seizure would signal total state collapse.
Haitian ‘Game of Thrones’
For weeks, diplomats, political party leaders and members of the transition council have been negotiating who should lead the next phase of Haiti’s fragile government – and how current leaders should exit.
Behind the scenes, intrigue, accusations of power grabs and profanity-laden confrontations have multiplied in what insiders call a Haitian Game of Thrones.
Council members have been accused of manoeuvring to force out Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime, while also attempting to remove council president Laurent Saint-Cyr.
“Their goal is to change the prime minister and the secretary-general of the palace so they can take over security and the state because they want to stay after Feb 7,” said a source inside the transition. Two others confirmed efforts to remove Fils-Aime via a council vote are ongoing.
Critics argue council members want to extend their mandate to influence elections and protect themselves from potential sanctions or arrests once they leave office.
“They want to push the transition to a year or two,” the source said, adding that despite public assurances, “these guys are all over the place campaigning” to remain.
The request for ammunition
Police only learned of Cange’s weapons request when he was summoned to the Inspector-General’s office for removing two senior officers and their deputies from the palace without permission.
The matter quickly became entangled in the council’s political manoeuvring, after two presidential advisers intervened to accompany Cange.
Cange has dismissed the summons as “an administrative follow-up” and requested postponements, writing he was “fully mobilised in the development of an operations plan” for Feb 7. Sources claim some advisers told him the investigation was cancelled, though police say it remains open.
At a minimum, Cange is suspected of trying to destabilise palace security; at worst, he may be acting on behalf of council allies.
Jean Elysee Celiscar, part of a civic group proposing solutions for Feb 7, said advisers’ involvement suggests council members are seeking to extend their mandate.
“Something suspicious is going on,” he said. “They involved themselves to show that they are the ones behind it.”
Moise’s assassination
Haitians have reason to be wary.
President Jovenel Moise was assassinated in his home in July 2021, despite the presence of multiple security officers.
A police inquiry found guards were passive, facilitating the attackers’ access. Among the more than 40 officers jailed were Divisional Commissioner Jean Laguel Civil, the presidential security coordinator, and Dimitri Herard, head of the General Security Unit.
Both escaped from prison during a gang assault on Port-au-Prince’s National Penitentiary in 2024.
Pushback on demands
Cange was appointed by the council to replace Paraison, who had been promoted to police chief. Months earlier, Paraison had been wounded during a gang assault on the palace.
After taking command of around 800 officers, Cange concluded that the palace was under-defended.
He requested 200 extra officers and additional reinforcements, citing the unstable political climate. But palace secretary-general Regine Haddad swiftly resisted.
After Moise’s assassination, she decreed that no coordinator could appoint personnel unilaterally.
In a Jan 6 letter to Justice Minister Patrick Pelissier, Haddad said Cange treated her as a subordinate, bypassing the proper chain of command and writing directly to council president Saint-Cyr.
The discord has already caused disruption: on Haiti’s Independence Day, on Jan 1, the national anthem was delayed for more than an hour because there was no one to coordinate palace police officers, a source said. — Tribune News Service
