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NEWS > EVERYONE ELSE > WYCLEF JEAN TO FOLLOW IN BEST TRADITION OF HAITIAN LEADERSHIP
WYCLEF JEAN TO FOLLOW IN BEST TRADITION OF HAITIAN LEADERSHIP
August 6 2010
Port-au-Prince, Haiti – In the Old World things like political corruption, crushing poverty, and racial violence are a way of life. Some countries have been able to leave much of that behind, but the vast majority of people on the three old continents still
struggle with such realities. Inequalities certainly exist in the New World and the sordid history of slavery in the United States and the plight of the Aborigines in Australia are certainly nothing to sneer at, but it is nothing compared to the endemic trauma that exists in their parent countries, except in Haiti.
The global realization of the horror of Haiti was made very clear earlier this year when the country was hit by the massive earthquake that left thousands dead. It wasn’t the quake or the death that struck most of the world, it was their complete inability to deal with the crisis that was so striking. The poverty and the lack of infrastructure in the nation’s capital made it clear that the world had left Haiti behind and seeing that, the world tried to help. Months later, little of that help has been seen by the people of Haiti. Rubble still lines the streets of the capital and hospitals are on the verge of shutting down. However some haven’t forgotten including one of the most famous Haitian expatriates, Wyclef Jean who has now announced his candidacy for President, hoping to follow in the best traditions of that nation’s leaders.
“It's a moment in time and in history. It's very emotional. I would like to tell President Barack Obama that the United States has Obama and Haiti has Wyclef Jean. My focus on helping Haiti turn a new corner will only grow stronger. If not for the earthquake, I probably would have waited another 10 years before doing this,” said Jean of his Presidential bid. “If I can't take five years out to serve my country as President then everything I've been singing about, like equal rights, doesn't mean anything. “
Jean will be competing against some other guys who are far less famous inside or outside of the country.
“From the very beginning Haiti has had issues with leadership. Obviously when the
French ruled the country it was a slave colony which is not ever going to provide for
the best of leadership examples and things have been up and down since then and it will take a special person to turn things around,” said Scrape TV International analyst Gustav Hander. “At first glance one wouldn’t think that Jean has what it takes to be President. He’s a musician with no legislative or political experience. He’s got no notable experience with law enforcement, international diplomacy, or improving infrastructure but he does have a history of embezzling money and tax evasion so you take the good with the bad. That lack of experience in the basic elements of governance could be a hindrance but everything else puts him in the best Haitian tradition.”
Jean apparently really cares about the Haitian people which would be a switch from previous Presidents should it prove true.
“You look at someone equally unqualified like Ronald Reagan and the success he had and you think maybe it’s possible. The difference is Reagan had all kinds of infrastructure support and in Haiti, there’s really just a bunch of guys. The advisors in Haiti are probably not the kind of people that one should listen to,” continued Hander. “Generally a few hit records would not be enough to be the leader of a country but his other experience, particularly in making all that money off his charitable efforts, that’s a strong resume item and could turn the tide.”
It is not believed that should he become President that his $2.1 million tax lien will not be forgiven by the IRS alongside the country’s foreign debt.
Emil Uliya, International Correspondent
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