PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti (CMC):

A group of powerful Haitian legislators has warned that they may reject President René Préval's new nominee for prime minister.

"We don't have anyone we are going to propose, but we believe there are others that are better than this choice," said Levaillant Louis Jeune, a deputy of the 52-member Progressive Parliamentarians Con-ference, a cross-party coalition in the lower, 99-seat Chamber of Deputies.

Nomination expected

Presidential adviser Robert Manuel is expected to be nominated this week, two months after Edouard Alexis was ousted as prime minister during food riots that left at least seven people dead.

Members of the Chamber of Deputies were expected to make a final decision on whether to ratify Manuel after a meeting with Préval on Wednesday.

The Chamber of Deputies last month rejected Préval's first choice, international banker, Ericq Pierre, to replace Alexis.

Jeune said deputies wanted to examine Manuel's plans for agricultural reform, courting international investment and addressing an ongoing wave of kidnappings for ransom.

Cabinet approval

Manuel's qualifications and choice of Cabinet members must also be approved by both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

Manuel, 55, is a close confidant of Préval and a former top public security official. Supporters believe he could improve safety, while opponents accuse him of masterminding harsh crackdowns against backers of ousted former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.