Haiti FM Lamothe to become PM, form new government Haitian President Michel Martelly has asked Foreign Minister Laurent Lamothe to become prime minister and form a new government after the nation's last premier resigned, an official said Thursday. Lamothe will replace Garry Conille, who abruptly stood down Friday after just four months in office, bringing new political turmoil to impoverished Haiti, which is struggling to recover from a catastrophic 2010 earthquake. The process of appointing Lamothe, who is considered one of Martelly's closest aides and who studied in Haiti and in the United States, was to begin shortly in parliament, according to the official. In Haiti, the prime minister is appointed by the president and mainly serves as cabinet chief. Conille had clashed with other ministers over an investigation launched by lawmakers concerning foreign passports held by senior government officials, including Martelly. Haiti does not recognize dual nationality. Haiti's parliament approved Conille's appointment in October but his sudden resignation led Martelly to vow that a successor would be nominated "rapidly." Appointing a new prime minister and forming a government, however, could take months, as Martelly does not have a majority in parliament and political bargaining could lead to delays in formalizing Lamothe's new role. Lamothe received a political sciences degree from Barry University in Miami and also earned an MBA at St Thomas University in Florida. Known as a keen sportsman, he played tennis for Haiti in the Davis Cup. He became foreign minister in Martelly's government in October last year. Martelly's administration is trying to ramp up stalled reconstruction efforts following the devastating January 12, 2010 earthquake that flattened large parts of Port-au-Prince and damaged much of the south of the country. The magnitude 7.0 quake killed 250,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands. According to UN figures, the quake killed, injured or displaced one in six of the Caribbean nation's entire population of almost 10 million.