Haiti is in for a surprise as Wyclef Jean can be running for president. The earthquake that hit Haiti last January was devastating and Wyclef Jean, as the Grammy winner as frontman of the Fugees, thinks he needs to help the individuals of this native land. Jean’s running within the election is going to be interesting considering it is one of probably the most important elections Haiti will ever have. The majority are concerned because Jean has no political experience. Whether he will qualify to run is also in question, because he left Haiti at age 9 and grew up in New York and New Jersey.
Haiti president possibility for Wyclef Jean
Thursday, Wyclef Jean announced on a Miami radio station that he planned to run for president. Because Jean is running, he will stop being the founder and chairman of the Yélé foundation, reports the Miami Herald. Jean’s Yélé Haiti Foundation has raised $ 9.1 million for Haiti earthquake relief, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy. The earthquake was a 7.0 magnitude which happened January 12 and devastated the capitol, Port au Prince, and Jean was one of the first individuals to respond to it.
Haiti earthquake is reason why Jean wants to run
. He interviewed with the New York Times saying:
“I’m not running for president so much as I’m being drafted. The youth, in their mind, if I don’t come and put a perspective to things, they feel there’s no future for the country, and I have to agree with them.”
. Candidates for the Haitian presidency must be citizens with five or more years of residency in Haiti. Both requirements are met by Jean despite the fact that he hasn’t lived there since he was a child. He has a Haitian passport after being born in Croix des Bouquets.
Havel and Reagan has competition being compared to Jean
NPR said to Time magazine that Jean, when referring to his transition, will say he’s like Ronald Reagan and Vaclav Havel. Before Reagan and Havel got elected, they got a lot of experience which is unlike Jean. Australia’s environment minister, former Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett, was an extremely successful musician in politics. Blur drummer Dave Rowntree ran for a seat for the British parliament this year but was trounced along with the rest of the Labour Party.
Jean’s Haiti is in dire straits
The election prepared for November 28 can be one of one of the most essential ones for Haiti as Wyclef Jean tries to win. There was an earthquake in Haiti taking 300,000 lives which the president can have to work on helping the country because of. More than six months later, 1.6 million individuals nevertheless live in makeshift camps throughout the capital and in cities to the south.
Further reading
Miami Herald
miamiherald.com/2010/08/05/1762628/its-official-wyclef-jean-to-run.html
New York Times
nytimes.com/2010/08/05/world/americas/05haiti.html?_r=1
NPR
npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128996915
