Wyclef Jean, the hip-hop star who had hoped to become Haiti's next president, said Sunday that his lawyers would challenge the recent ruling from election officials that kept him from the list of eligible candidates. Supporters of the hip-hop star Wyclef Jean protested Saturday in Croix des Bouquets, Haiti, against his exclusion from the country's presidential election.
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He had simply accepted the election council decision when it was announced Friday night, but in a message on Sunday on Twitter, his preferred means of public communication, Mr. Jean said he had decided to appeal because: "We have met all the requirements set by the laws. And the law must be Respected."
Even with such brevity (and a capital "R"), Mr. Jean actually revealed the central conflict of his candidacy: When faced with a choice between charismatic celebrity and strict loyalty to laws that limit outside influence, which would Haiti choose?
Friday's ruling seemed to indicate the latter. An election council spokesman, Richardson Dumel, said Sunday that there was no legal mechanism for contesting an election eligibility decision.
But Mr. Jean said he had been barred prematurely. He told The Associated
Press that another Haitian elections entity had not issued a final
ruling on whether he met the requirement that presidential candidates
live in Haiti for five consecutive years before the election in
November.
Source: New York Times | DAMIEN CAVE
