vc318

Wyclef Jean to run for president of Haiti? Buzz growing - Haiti - MiamiHerald.com


Hip-hop superstar Wyclef Jean is set to announce plans to run for president of Haiti, sources say.

PORT-AU-PRINCE -- Speculation mounted Tuesday that Haitian singer Wyclef Jean will officially announce his candidacy Thursday for president of the Western Hemisphere's most embattled country.

CNN announced that Jean, who was born in Haiti but has lived much of his life in the United States, will appear Thursday night on Larry King Live to discuss his plans. The Associated Press quoted former legislator Pierre Eric Jean-Jacques as saying that the hip-hop superstar will run as part of Jean-Jacques' ``together we are strong'' coalition.

The reports are the latest to point toward a run for the former Fugees star. The Miami Herald reported Friday that Jean officially announced his intentions in a series of meetings, and that his lawyers were working on his paperwork.

``It's a huge decision,'' Jean told The Herald last week about the prospect of his running. ``The decision is not final.''

From the dining tables of Pétionville to the camps of Port-au-Prince, the candidacy of Jean has been the topic of intense discussion in recent weeks. Many wonder whether he is eligible to run, is qualified or merely trying to promote his new album.

Jean, 37, represents a departure from the status quo of the current government led by President René Préval.

``Wyclef has many people following him, and this could be a great opportunity for Haiti,'' said Kevin Luma, 19, a student. ``Maybe because he loves Haitians so much, he loves Haiti so much, things can change -- even if not 100 percent.''
For others, he draws comparisons to former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide -- but only so far. Aristide, a priest-turned-president ousted in 2004, enjoyed popular support but also fomented class hatred.

``I believe, like Aristide he will carry a groundswell because of his youth, because of his success, because of the hope he represents,'' said Georges Sassine, a Haitian businessman and president of the Haitian Industrialists Association. ``But unlike Aristide, this is a man who knows how things work, having lived in the United States. . . . Most important, I do not detect any envy or hatred from him and this is most encouraging.''

Jean's uncle, Haiti Ambassador to the U.S. Raymond Joseph, will also be a candidate. He reportedly sent his resignation to Préval early last week.

Jean and Joseph will be part of a crowded field as candidates begin to signal their intentions. The one-week filing period ends on Saturday. Sources say that Jean plans to register his candidacy on Thursday before his appearance on Larry King.

A nine-member electoral council will determine who is qualified to run under Haitian law. Jean would have to prove to the council's satisfaction that he has lived in Haiti for five consecutive years, that he holds only Haitian citizenship and that he owns land here.

In the last presidential election, in 2006, Haitian authorities blocked the candidacy of Texas millionaire Dumarsais Siméus, noting that the constitution bars a U.S. citizen from holding dual citizenship, which rendered him ineligible.

Whoever wins the Nov. 28 election will inherit one of the toughest jobs in the region. The country is barely recovering from the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake that claimed a government estimated 300,000 lives and left much of Port-au-Prince in ruin. More than a million people remain displaced, and much of the billions in aid promised by donors have still to arrive.

Jean has been one of the most recognizable voices calling on the international community to help Haitians. His Yéle Haiti Foundation has raised millions, some from text donations shortly after the earthquake. The charity has come under scrutiny over how it spends the funds donated to it on behalf of Haiti.
A recent attempt by Jean to reach out to the population by gathering 200 people and handing each $7 was criticized by some camp dwellers.

Jean, who has defended allegations against his grass-roots nongovernmental organization, said the money handed out to quake victims was a symbolic gesture to kick off his Yéle Corps rubble removal project that will begin employing 1,000 people at the end of this month.

Jean has also been criticized for his management of finances of the Yéle foundation. Reports surfaced in January that the foundation paid Jean to perform at fundraising events and that a station he owns sold the charity advertising. Jean acknowledged on Oprah and other shows that the foundation had been poorly run and he hired a new accounting firm.

In recent weeks, Jean has become more political in his work in Haiti, even penning a column for the Huffington Post and other publications to mark the six-month anniversary of the quake.

Well, I hope he knows what he's doing. The political influence in Haiti is very strong - it's not like they're just going to let him do the things that should be done to make the country better. Most of the wealthy want the poor to falter, sadly.

vc318

Seems like Sean Penn isn't too happy about this news:

Candidate Wyclef Jean takes on his first critic: Sean Penn - Haiti - MiamiHerald.com

sunnykerr

Sean Penn isn't the only one. There's been a lot of reporting on this since the news broke. The local Haitian community here in Montreal seems pretty divided.

There are people who think he's probably just what the country needs, someone new with fresh energy and a record of trying to do good in Haiti.

But then there are also people who think that he's a musician... so what does he know about politics and civil administration?

And there are even people who find it strange that a man who left the country at age seven, doesn't speak any French and (and this is them saying so, not me) whose Creole comes with a huge American accent would be the leader of a country where it's already the opinion of some that the United States controls too much. They want to know why this American man wants to have the highest office in Haiti.

And, of course, the current electoral law in Haiti apparently states that one must have been living for at least five years in Haiti to be elegible for representative office. So that's a hurdle, too.

_vega_

I think that if Wyclef truly wants to become a president he needs to take the time to live in Haiti at least during one presidential cycle and learn everything he needs about it's politics.

Seeing the way he helped Haiti after the devastating earthquake I do believe that he wants to help his native country. However, he needs to be completely inmersed in the knowledge of the way the government works, especially considering that he has been out of there since he was a kid. He may have some experiences of his own with managing but it's not the same thing as managing a country with such difficult situations as the ones Haiti faces.

sunnykerr

Yeah, that's a bit where I am as well. I think you can't question the strength of his desire to help out Haiti and the people of Haiti. And I'm sure that, since his eye has been trained on his home country all of these years, he's not completely ignorant of how things work.

But you can't change first-hand knowledge. And the lingustic gap isn't that big of a deal on its own, but when you add the fact that he has never been involved in politics before and he hasn't lived in Haiti for upwards of 25 years? It's something that gives me pause.

I'm not saying he shouldn't do what he's doing or that he would be a terrible president... I just have some trepidation.

vc318

Politically, I don't think Wyclef has it to run the country. Providing aid is one thing but being the president is another.

sunnykerr

It seems a lot of people don't want Wyclef Jean as the next President either:

Source

The more time passes, and the least likely it seems that Mr Jean will indeed become President.

sunnykerr

Source

So I guess that's it then.

It's not like we didn't see it coming, but you have to wonder why no one told this guy to save himself the embarassement.

Callace

I wonder why he even wanted to run, but that is another question no surprise he wasn't qualified.

sunnykerr

Well, I have never doubted Jean's desire to help the people of Haiti. Perhaps he thought this was the way to go about it?



And he certainly has been present in the country in recent years, so maybe he thought that would overcome the residence requirements...

But, still, I don't understand how he didn't realize that he would come off as some sort of agent for American interests.

vc318

Providing assistance to Haiti is one thing but I doubt he had a clue about the politics involved.

You.Yes.Youღ

Yeah, I really don't think he knew about the politics involved. I'm glad nothing came out of that.

sunnykerr

Well, he's appealing.

I don't think he has a leg to stand on, but that's what he's decided to do.

frostie

Wyclef not speaking French is understandable because many French-speakers in Haiti come from the elite classes who were lucky enough to be educated. However, it seems very strange that people would claim he has an American accent when speaking Creole.

sunnykerr

It's very hard for me to comment on that since the only knowledge of the situation I have is from watching the news, both local and "international" (inasmuch as American news isn't my local news).

And the local news will of course show Haitians who are all fluent in French. That is why we have a big Haitian community here, because of the language connection. Now, were they part of the elite back home? Going by what you're saying, I would assume that is very possible, if not completely likely.

But even the American news shows have shown Haitians who speak French. I've seen them, with the Good Morning America anchor and the Brian Williams and Anderson Cooper. And I don't speak Creole, not even a little bit, and I understand what they're saying.

So I arrive at the conclusion that, after Creole, French must be the go-to language in Haiti.

The fact that Wyclef Jean speaks no French... I wouldn't even know that it's an issue if I hadn't heard members of the local Haitian community saying that is a concern to them. I personally have no problem with whether the wouldbe president of Haiti speaks French or not. The only reason I brought it up was because that is what I saw others who have far more vested interest in the matter raise this issue.

Same for the American accent in Creole thing. As I said, I don't speak Creole. So I would have no way of knowing either how one can have an American accent whilst speaking it or what any kind of accent in Creole would sound like.

I was merely relaying the information I gathered from watching people from the local Haitian community comment on the issue.

I'm sorry that this isn't more helpful. But these two things aren't opinions I came up with on my own. I was merely relaying what seemed to be at least one opinion from the Haitian community. And, I'll admit, one that seemed legitimate in my eyes since I do believe that it is important for a leader to speak in a matter that his constituents can relate to.

Meanwhile, it seems like the presidential bid is over:

Source

So I guess that's that.