05/14/2014
Open Letter to the President of Haiti: Joseph Michel Martelly
May 14, 2011– May 14, 2014
Mr. President,
Winning the elections is one thing. Governing the country is quite another experience. To lead Haiti, a good head of state must not only create an atmosphere of integration to give confidence to the various sectors of national life, it must also have a sense of leadership to attract a majority to support the platform of his government team.
A good head of state is one who understands that he is a servant placed in power to help his fellow citizens to find a minimum of well-being and security, not one who uses this function to humiliate, nor get rich by giving all privileges to his circle of friends.
Mr. President, learning by experience from the errors of your predecessors, is a smart way to learn to succeed in your office.
Mr. President, the first mistake of your administration is concentrating power around friends who sometimes have no experience of public affairs. Without any real vision for change, the government is wasting too much energy in short-term projects that have no impact on the sustainable development of Haiti.
Mr. President,
In the state that Haiti finds itself in, I think everything is a priority, however there are still choices to be made being that everything cannot be done in the short time of your mandate. But when it comes to priorities in a country that has not grown for almost 30 years, a country which has not advanced, which rather, has deteriorated, I am aware that the task is not easy. How can Haiti be developed without an intelligent integration of the Haitian Diaspora in the task of reconstruction? When I speak of integrating the Diaspora, it is not only fictitious voting laws for the Diaspora, but motivating their real involvement in the development of Haiti. Without exaggerating the numbers, more than 60% of Haitian professionals are immigrants abroad.
Mr. President,
The majority of Haitians questioning the balance of your administration are rather critical in their judgment. For a large percentage only "friends and family" enjoy the benefits of power. The vast majority believe unanimously that corruption is the greatest plague that ravages Haiti. This corruption is at the root of all other problems; Institutional weakness, insecurity, abuse of rights - investment and intellectual flight - etc.
The report from Transparency International and the Episcopal Conference of Haiti cannot be clearer. Haiti is currently ranked among the most corrupt countries and occupies the 165th place in 176, in the perception of corruption index for 2014. The Perception Index of Haiti is rated at zero (0) which means that the country is perceived as highly corrupt. "Looking at the Index of Perception of Corruption in 2014, it is clear that corruption is a major threat to humanity. Corruption destroys lives and communities, undermines the country and its institutions. It generates popular rage that threatens to further destabilize societies and exacerbate violent conflicts, “Transparency International reminds us.
There are doubts about the regime's ability to sympathize above all the common knowledge that things have deteriorated in several areas: Many Haitians consider 2014 as one of the worst the country has experienced economically and socially. One Haitian out of a hundred has a job. The salary received is so ridiculous that even for those who work, "living with dignity" is a daily challenge. Hunger kills in remote northeastern areas. People eat dust and pure cactus in order to survive. The confusion is even worse in the case of the future of the youth. A desperate young population who seeks refuge in drugs, s*x, alcohol, prostitution ...
With 85% of products imported, life is so expensive in Haiti, which prices instead of climbing are flying up to the Peak of Macaya. On the political scene, the behavior remains unchanged. The weapon of deception is still being used to deceive the people and distract them from thinking about the real issues.
Your regime, some say, does not propose any action that tends to slow the deterioration of the situation. Instead the trend is steadily upward. So many trips abroad in the hopes of protecting the image of Haiti and attracting investors are far from having the expected results because the government does not inspire trust and nor does it create the conditions necessary for promoting and launching the nation's affairs.
Mr. President,
It has been a long time since we have denounced the poor governance, the corruption, and the continuing deterioration of the situation in the country, but your administration to date refuses to listen to reason to change its direction. I am writing you this open letter in hopes that my advice on the need for a realistic approach to develop Haiti is taken into account, and that this letter is considered as one from a selfless citizen who loves and wants to share in the progress of his country.
Sincerely,
Jean Sénat Fleury
