August 23, 2015

Immediately after the August 9 vote, even as Opont was in the process of laying his groundwork – to announce the pre-panned electoral results, favoring Martelly/Preval, a team of foreigners forced Opont’s revision, a revision that left the election in total confusion.

The confusion saw a handful of candidates receive enough to win, in the first round, while all others were left to refight the battle in round two. We were supposed to have a Parliament now, while running towards the Presidential elections in October.

All we have is another mess, that effectively leaves Martelly in a position to Rule by Decree.

I suppose that a candidate could win round 2 with 20%!

The American embassy has had a big interest in creating the environment for a free-and-fair election (for the first time!) but fumbled – again!

Ambassador Pamela White should have seen the developing disaster from her position within the Michel/Sophia Martelly circle. Some say that an arm’s-length view would have been more advantageous to the American government, and the Haitian population.

Unfortunately, this lady seems to have been absorbed by her access to our President, and his inner circle, biased slightly by her long-term friendship with First Lady Sophia Martelly. This bias was no favour to President Martelly who could have used some honest criticism and he moved to place his/our Nation in an impossible situation.

She should have seen the growing problems with the Martelly/Preval partnership, aimed at gaining control through the expensive – some say $79,000,000 – elections.

That would buy a lot of rice-and-beans for Haiti’s hungry children. Some are starving to death in the northwest.

She should have noted – and derailed – creation of the Martelly political party BOUCLIER – led by a collection of drug-dealers, kidnappers, murderers, and assorted other people of flawed character.  It was said to be led by Martelly brother-in-law Kiko St. Remy, a person with a spotted reputation, to say the least.

She should have seen, and commented upon, the growing, and obvious problems within the CEP. When Opont admitted to fixing the 2006 elections, for Rene Preval, she could have quietly, over one of her many Barbancourts, with the President, that Opont was not really the guy to trust with Haiti’s future.

Opont had already screwed it up once, and now does his best to destroy us with the August 9th crime. It must be described as a crime because that is exactly what it is.

The rest of our friends, ( I use this phrase loosely because friends do not treat friends, as these people have treated the Haitian people) Canada, France, Brazil, CARICOM, the EEU, MINUSTAH  should have observed the approaching train wreck.

Haiti really needed technical help and several thousand observers to guarantee the integrity of the ballot. We got a handful of observers, many with Spanish names, which suggest an inability to communicate, and they didn’t view distant areas.

Instead, after the criminal electoral fraud, in which fewer than 3% voted, a couple of dozen observers validate the crime, leaving very little room in which the Haitian people can move to correct this fraud and avoid the chaos that must follow.

Even before the polls closed, or the votes counted, MINUSTAH’s chief made a specific public statement that the elections were a true reflection of the democratic process, with a few minor flaws. This was quickly followed by OAS and CARICOM validation.

What chance has Democracy got, when people treat the principle this way?
Their reaction shows that Haiti is, at the very best, a Fourth Class Nation.

Already there are indications of a growing Tsunami, among Haiti’s 10,000,000 citizens, young and old, from all sectors of Haitian society, and political parties. They are looking for a leader around which they can coalesce into an explosively dangerous element that will move to remove the Martelly government.

Already there are scenes of violence in Cap Haitian, Jeremie, Petit Goave, Gonaives, Correfour, Cite Soleir, Petion-Ville, Port-au-Prince, and more.

Plans are already in motion to block school opening on September 7.

As a side issue, Education Minister Nesmy Manigat continues to steal a fortune, in support of his personal desire to become Prime Minister, or President, spending a fortune on media coverage for himself.

This money would be better invested in teachers’ salaries. They have not been paid throughout his term as Minister, even as he purchases tons of school supplies, that remain stored in 6 huge rooms at the Ministry of Education. He bought this stuff through a false front, making a fortune in the process.

Minister Nesmy Manigat, and others like him, only add fuel to th fire of unrest, amongst our people. School is the most important factor, in Haitian life, and the blockage of school opening could well be the factor that collapses the Martelly government.

Nesmy Manigat hopes to be a member of the Transitional Government that will follow. He has run a major media campaign in support of this. Manigat has over 30 journalists being paid from his ministry funds. Manigat should go to jail instead of finding a place in any Transitional Government.

All factors are putting the skids under Michel Martelly and he knows this. He also knows that he is responsible for today’s impending disaster. The removal of Laurent Lamothe, replacing him with the criminal, criminally incompetent Evans Paul was the point at which he placed the gun against his forehead.

Who will pull the trigger?

With Haiti’s luck, the gun will not be loaded.