Comments on: Secretary Clinton: “Haiti is on a brink”

By: Gabner Cineas

Gabner Cineas — Sun, 17 May 2009 13:09:18 +0000

I'm a QA Tester and I need to know what groups are out there that I can join to help in any way that I can? I can be contacted via email at gcineas@hotmail.com. Thank you

By: Jocelyn McCalla

Jocelyn McCalla — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 18:11:08 +0000

Thanks for your comment. A couple of remarks. Yes vultures feast on the carcasses of dead animals, but the analogy is a little off I think. Haiti is rather a cash cow, not a dead one. Obviously those who profit from the dysfunctional government system in Haiti hope that it can stay that way for a long time and not go completely dead because that would cut off the flow of funds into their coffers. The second remark has to do with the recommendation that there be an oversight committee to monitor the spending. It's not clear that you're suggesting a committee born and bred in Haiti or an American committee. Regardless of the nature of the committee, it is most important that the public remain engaged, i.e. that it holds both the donor and the recipient accountable. In other words citizen participation in the affairs of state is of the utmost importance at this stage, and the Haitian Diaspora should so organize itself to demand more accountability. There are quite a number of ways to do so. For example setting up a group that alerts its constituents of policy and administrative initiatives in DC, ensuring that credible Haitian voices are heard and included in the policy debates both at the Administration level and at the level of Congress are some of the steps. The US has spent much money in Haiti, but the allocation and disbursement of funds have been questionable expecially in recent years as the international community has tried to stabilize Haiti so that its people do not spill over and become a threat to regional stability.

By: vanite laroche

vanite laroche — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 17:12:22 +0000

Kudos to Mrs Clinton! But we need to make sure that any monetary assistance to Haiti does not land in the pockets of all its corrupted politicians, especially the so-called senators and deputies in the lower chambers. All these people are vultures and for them Haiti is the dead cow. Before any help reach Haiti, I would strongly suggest that a specific comity should be created and their duties would be to supervise and ensure that any foreign aid must be used for the purpose that it was intended. Also, it would be very important to create a system that would hold these same people accountable for the proper management of the funds.