Hip-hop superstar Wyclef Jean flew out of his native Haiti Friday as clouds gathered over his outsider presidential bid announced barely 24 hours earlier. “I am leaving because of family obligations, but I will return in several weeks to enter the electoral campaign,” the New York-based singer, speaking in Creole, told reporters at Port-au-Prince airport. The Grammy-winning former Fugees frontman has little experience in politics but casts his insurgent bid in the Nov. 28 election as a chance to save a country brought to its knees by poverty, mismanagement and last January's devastating earthquake. But even before competing in a race that already features 14 candidates, Jean was hitting obstacles. Questions are being asked about a pop star's suitability for pulling Haiti back from disaster or even whether he is eligible to run. The constitution requires candidates live at least five years in Haiti and the elections board will decide Aug. 17 whether Jean qualifies. He faces serious allegations back in the United States, according to The Smoking Gun website, which reports that Jean owes US tax authorities more than $2.1 million. Even Jean's former Fugees bandmate, Pras, gave the cold shoulder, according to the New York Daily News. Pras was quoted saying he had endorsed another candidate, Michel Martelly, “because he is the most competent candidate for the job.”
