PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti (CMC) – Haiti’s Opposition groups have dismissed moves by President Michel Martelly to establish an electoral commission that would make recommendations to Government and the electoral council ahead of this month’s presidential run-off.

The “Group of Eight” presidential candidates, which include run-off contender Jude Celestin, objected to a decree by President Martelly on Thursday to create the commission that would have three days to evaluate the widely criticised election process and suggest ways out of Haiti’s electoral dispute.

The opposition parties said the announcement was meant merely as a “cosmetic solution”.

Prime Minister Evans Paul had recommended the establishment of the commission that would have 72 hours to report back with recommendations to the Government and the country’s nine-member Provisional Electoral Council (CEP).

Paul said the Government believes that the commission is necessary to help consolidate political and social stability, and organise elections that are “credible, transparent, participatory and inclusive”.

The recommendation comes as Haiti remains engulfed in an electoral crisis, with many doubting whether the run-off will take place as scheduled on December 27.

Local observer groups and Opposition candidates have alleged “massive fraud” in the balloting in favour of Martelly’s handpicked successor, banana exporter Jovenel Moise.

Last week Moïse called for the electoral process to continue. He has dismissed the fraud allegations, acknowledging only that there were some irregularities with the balloting that involved 54 presidential candidates.

But the Opposition groups have demanded an independent review of the October 25 first-round legislative and presidential elections, insisting they were rigged in favour of Moise.

“The G8 encourages the population to remain mobilised until the executive understands the need to respect the verdict of the polls,” the statement said, demanding also the resignation of the CEP members.

The official tally, which gave Moise nearly 33 per cent and Celestin 25 per cent of the votes, has been endorsed by international observers.

After preliminary results were announced in early November, Elena Valenciano, head of the European Union observer team, said it represented a “breath of hope for Haitian democracy”.

The Organization of American States (OAS), which is mounting an observer mission for the polls in December, said the results were consistent with what its team observed on election day.