Haiti presidential candidate urges 'quick' rescheduling of runoff
Jovenel Moise, Haiti's government-backed presidential candidate, urged a "quick" rescheduling Saturday of his country's runoff election in the wake of its abrupt postponement.
His comments came less than 24 hours after Haiti's electoral authority called off the Sunday vote due to "obvious security concerns."
Among those concerns are mounting opposition street protests by angry voters who say the first-round presidential election was marred by fraud that favored Moise.
More than a dozen polling stations were attacked or burned in Haiti Thursday to Friday, before the cancellation.
And Moise's opponent, opposition candidate Jude Celestin, has gone so far as to boycott the poll in protest.
Nonetheless, Moise told a news conference Saturday that he thought "the people are ready to vote for Jovenel Moise en masse" and called for "quick organization of the second round."
Moise, President Michel Martelly's hand-picked ally, took 32.76 percent of the vote over opposition flag-bearer Celestin's 25.29 percent during the October first round-vote.
But with many polling stations closed due to unrest and electoral skullduggery, Celestin's supporters cried foul, accusing Martelly of mounting an "electoral coup d'etat."
A runoff had been due to go ahead on December 27 but was then cancelled and moved after fraud allegations.
"What I do not quite understand about the CEP's decision is that they postponed the January 24 elections, just like they postponed the December 27 elections, without saying when it will finally take place," Moise said.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also called Saturday for the runoff to be held "without delay."
And the electoral observation mission of the Organization of American States urged "consensual, constructive dialogue to overcome the current political crisis and complete the electoral process."
The vote's indefinite postponement plunges Haiti into a fresh political crisis.
Since 1986, when president-for-life Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier fled a revolt, the Caribbean island nation, which is wracked by poverty and the after effects of a devastating 2010 earthquake, has struggled repeatedly to hold credible elections.