S. Samuel
Fugees frontman Wyclef Jean has stepped forward to address reports which claim he is ineligible to run for president of Haiti in November.
Despite alleged reports suggesting Jean does not meet presidency requirements, Jean claimed his run was not in jeopardy.
“I wanted to clarify a rumor on Reuters that there’s a list of candidates that came out and that (my) name isn’t on it,” Jean told CNN‘s Larry King on Thursday. “That’s not true. The list is supposed to come out tomorrow … It’s looking good for us.” (CNN)
Reports from Reuters claimed Jean did not meet a certain requirement, likely relating to residency.
Since the rapper announced his bid for office on “Larry King Live” earlier this month, his plans have been met largely with enthusiasm from the country’s residents, but he has been challenged on one key presidential requirement: residency. “He is not on the list as I speak,” an electoral official told Reuters, citing legal requirements that Jean does not meet as the reason for his exclusion. However, the official would not reveal which specific requirements the singer has failed to meet. (MTV)
After receiving criticism from actor Sean Penn, who questioned Clef’s ability to become Haiti president, the rapper responded to the remarks.
The singer also fumed when aides told him that actor Sean Penn, who has been managing an earthquake-survivor camp in the Haitian capital since the spring, had accused Jean of not spending enough time in Haiti after the quake and misappropriating $400,000 of the $9 million his charity, Yele Haiti, raised after the disaster. “I just want Sean Penn to fully understand I am a Haitian, born in Haiti and I’ve been coming to my country ever since (I was) a child,” he said. “He might just want to pick up thephone and meet, so he fully understands the man.” (Washington Post)
Prior to announcing a run for the presidency, Clef made headlines for leading a team of support during last winter’s massive Haiti earthquake.
A nine-person electorial council decided that the founding Fugees member–who was born in Port-au-Prince and raised from age 9 in New York and New Jersey–was not eligible to run for Haiti’s highest office. Wyclef was instrumental in providing support in the devastating 7.0-magnitude January earthquakes that shook the impoverished country to its core. He stepped down as founder and chairman of the Yéle Haiti Foundation to run for office. (VIBE)
No further details have been revealed as of now.
Check out footage of Wyclef Jean addressing Haiti’s earthquake earlier this year below:
