Saving Haiti: President Philip Joseph on Unity, Economic Reforms, and Tackling Gang Violence

[00:00:00] Hello and welcome to a very special broadcast of Brainsky Unleashed. Today's guest is definitely unique for this show. If you had to imagine a world where you were in charge of an entire nation that was struggling with gang violence,

[00:00:17] a complete hot mess, the economy totally blown out, and you were put in a position where you had to somehow clean this up and turn it into something better than it was and possibly even tasked with something that was better than it ever has been,

[00:00:30] what would you do? Well today's guest has that problem. And he's going to try and solve those problems. I am so blessed to have on the show the newly minted president, Philip Joseph, president of Haiti.

[00:00:48] Welcome to the program. Thank you so very much. Thank you. Thank you. It's an honor to be on here, Thomas. I've watched your show a few times and it's very, very educational and quite a privilege and honor to be here today.

[00:01:03] Thank you. Oh, no, listen, I appreciate it. I mean, listen, obviously you have good taste. I mean, why wouldn't you want to watch this show? Everyone should watch the show. This is like better than like Disney in the morning.

[00:01:13] So let's let's kind of get right down to it. You are now essentially the leader of a country that is on fire. You have challenges beyond the comprehension of most human beings. What do you plan on doing right now?

[00:01:32] Well, you know, that's that's a great question. And, you know, Haiti is it's not at the brink of disaster.

[00:01:39] We are at disaster. And one of the number one priorities of the new administration is get ourselves in a position where we we can cooperate together in a more fluid way than we have been. The gangs overthrew the government with machetes and pistols.

[00:02:00] So that tells you just about how cohesive we were prior to the disaster. So my first order of business is humanitarian. We've got to bring in aid. We have almost a million people displaced. The gangs are rampaging as the thought of Kenyan support comes closer and closer.

[00:02:25] The gangs become ever more angry and more willing to fight. So where we're at right now is bringing in aid. We have we need fuel. The cost of living has skyrocketed. We cannot hardly afford and the gangs are behaving in a brilliant.

[00:02:48] Piracy has taken quite the become the new pastime of the gangs. So my new job per se is to bring cohesion into a fragmented government and try to, for lack of better terms, present some sort of sort of form of normalcy for the people of Haiti.

[00:03:12] This is a this is a plan that's going to need cooperation with all international partners, the United States, Mexico, Canada. Our closest neighbors are furthest neighbors. We have many, many embassies abroad and I'm calling on our partners as well to look at Haiti.

[00:03:30] Notice Haiti's current situation. And even if it's not helping monetarily assist Haiti, if it's through humanitarian efforts as well. So, I mean, you know, yesterday was officially day one and you have all of this going on.

[00:03:49] What should the people of Haiti know about you? I mean, here you are. You're a voice on the radio. You're a face on the Internet.

[00:03:58] What should they know about you and why should you be trusted given the fact that they've struggled under so much crap for so long? And that's a good question. You know, I'm currently in the government, but I will speak on my government for a second here.

[00:04:16] We've maintained a perpetuation of corruption and I'm just going to come out and say what it is because it's something that it's the elephant in the room. And you might as well acknowledge that it exists versus continuing walking around it.

[00:04:30] And we have this giant blob in the middle of the room where would that ample space that our people could be utilizing. So what I mean by that is to answer that question, why should they try a Haitian that was born in Haiti?

[00:04:46] I was not born in Pétionville. I was not born in the rich sector of Haiti. I was born in Cité Soleil. I was adopted when I was three and a half to an American missionary family. We still go back every year.

[00:05:00] We have a house on Lagunao in Haiti to this day. That's what qualifies me to participate in the government. And so where we are right now in this position is the international community needed someone to step up and say, I'm willing to take on this job.

[00:05:20] Who is it going to be? Now, one of the biggest problems that we have is the diaspora. They make their money and then they leave Haiti.

[00:05:30] They leave Haiti. And I don't want to say they forget about Haiti, but Haiti's biggest export is poverty when we have natural resources. It's poverty because our families here in the United States are sending money back to Haiti.

[00:05:50] Now, why is it higher? The GDP is reflecting family members of the diaspora versus exports and imports. That should not be. It should be the other way around. So the one, the biggest reason to trust me is because I'm the one coming back.

[00:06:12] Haiti's never had someone return with funds to assist them. Haiti's always had leaders that have taken from the system, taken from the people.

[00:06:24] And then when the people realize it and stage a coup, then they hightail it to France or they hightail it to some country and they empty the coffers. That happened on Papadoc, Francois du Vallee.

[00:06:36] And this time we have a Haiti's coming back, making a U-turn and saying, I'm bringing my own resources to help you.

[00:06:44] So you said the magic word. And by my calendar, today is a Tuesday and about 2 p.m. is coming up. Is there a chance of a coup today? Well, you know, that seems to be quite the regular occurrence there. That's the State Department.

[00:07:02] I do. But 2 o'clock there's a regular coup. That's very true. And I'm, you know, I'm glad that we are forming some sort of normalcy in the government to make that.

[00:07:16] We can probably push that to 230. So hopefully we can make it so that it's not something that we have to deal with at all. But when it comes to the diaspora, they are very, very big on how can they make money in Haiti.

[00:07:40] But that goes back to my same statement that Kennedy said with Americans. It applies for everyone. Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.

[00:07:53] Members of the diaspora, ask what Haiti can do for you and then go on, get on your airplane and go back to the United States while our people are still living on two dollars a day.

[00:08:04] It's easy to go and visit and go stay in a nice place in Cap-Haitien and make a vlog on Haitian. But are you really caring about Haiti? If Haiti is not your priority when it's having trouble,

[00:08:21] do not brag about it being Haitian when everything is good. Great, you're Haitian. If you're an American and you're here in this country and America needs your help, we are quick.

[00:08:31] Americans are quick to stand up and help each other during a natural disaster. 9-11, Americans galvanized. Now where are the Haitians during our 9-11?

[00:08:42] I think what you have is very unique. It's a very unique message, which is one of the reasons why I wanted to have you on my program because it is so unique.

[00:08:50] I think it doesn't even necessarily matter whether it's Haitians or people in general. People need hope, right?

[00:09:00] People without hope is a people that will not last. What can you say that will give them hope? What picture can you paint for them that could show them that in the next 6-12 months that there should be hope because their life will be different? How?

[00:09:17] Unity. When we unite together, we can change our standard of living. Now one of the things that new Haitian leadership should do and will do under my administration is to focus on improving the standard of living for Haitians.

[00:09:36] One of them is we're going to begin major projects in all 10 of our departments. See, due to the fact that the central government is overrun by the gangs, that does not mean the government cannot help its people.

[00:09:53] Now, due to the fact that the government has been financially constrained and unable to, that's why I've stepped up and said I'm going to use my own personal funding.

[00:10:02] Now, I'm not going to concentrate the money in one area where it can evaporate. I'm spreading the money out in different projects, water sanitation projects, humanitarian projects, temporary housing, in different minorly affected or non-gang affected areas.

[00:10:23] So that way we can spread out this national diaspora we're dealing with, with everyone leaving the capital. I mean, we have a crisis on our hands that we have to try to figure out and right now it seems like no one wants to or is able to figure out what to do.

[00:10:42] So this is why I've grabbed the bull by the horns and doing it myself. So I'm spreading funds out between the 10 departments and having the governors and three signatories on each account.

[00:10:54] Find the issues that are needed in the region and then tackle the departments region, the issues in each department. It varies on how many villages or towns or cities are in each of the departments.

[00:11:08] But we're allocating funds according to the need. That way the people are able to utilize these necessary funds and we can hopefully alleviate some of this issue that we have.

[00:11:24] Is it fair to say that one of the reasons that the gangs are doing what they do is because they got sick of the corruption that existed? Are the gangs working strictly on just political frustration or is this...

[00:11:44] Do you feel that the gangs are doing a mix of political frustration or capitalizing on frustration just to simply wreak havoc and take whatever they want and control whatever they want? What do you think is the main motivation with the gangs?

[00:11:59] The gangs are doing what they know. The gangs are doing what they know. If you ask any Haitian that has not been outside of Haiti, ask them what's on the other side of that mountain and they will say the other side of the mountain.

[00:12:13] So when you take that same mentality and regress it back to 1804 with the machete and fighting for your freedom, if the other side of the mountain is all you know, if fighting for your freedom and this historical event is all you know, you don't know about Desert Storm.

[00:12:34] You don't know about the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. You don't know about the Korean War in Vietnam and the foxholes. They don't know about trench warfare. They don't know about the British trading volley fire with the Revolutionary Army.

[00:12:51] They regress back to what they know and when they feel that they are being imposed on and their rights are being imposed, they will pick up a machete and do what they know. Now is it right? No.

[00:13:04] But they don't understand. They need leadership to come in and say okay, yes there's been corruption. Yes the issue has been ongoing. No the government hasn't done anything about it and yes we are going to.

[00:13:18] What I need you to do is to quit killing each other because you're killing the workforce to fix Haiti. You're killing our people. We need the people to fix this country. We will fix the wages. This $2 a day business is done.

[00:13:33] I've already ordered my new administration. We're going to pay our people $10 minimum an hour. We're going to start at $10 an hour for anything and then we'll go from there.

[00:13:45] We have natural resources. Haiti is very, very rich in iridium. People don't really know about iridium. We have gold. We have oil but we have iridium and iridium is used for electronics and for other very, very interesting things.

[00:14:02] The US government likes it. It's used for satellites and stuff like that. So I want to put Haiti on the track forward. Haiti on the track where we're exporting iridium deposits to our big trading partners, the United States for one.

[00:14:16] And we're utilizing the funds to rebuild the country. We're going to start from the bottom up. Haiti is going to rebuild entirely. I'm going to tear out every single brick of road and I'm going to partner with Google and other major corporations, Tesla, maybe Amazon.

[00:14:33] We're going to put in a smart road. Every inch of the country is going to be new. I'd like to bring in a Meglev line that will take you from Port-au-Prince to Cape Hacian within six minutes.

[00:14:43] I want to bring in, we have all older vehicles, which is prime for me to restructure through our Ministry of Transportation a new transportation mechanism. I want to gather up all our old cars.

[00:14:57] Take the scrap, get money off of that. But also we partner with Google. See, we're not a very big country. So there's nothing stopping us from partnering with a tech giant that will put in new roads in our country that could partner cooperate with satellites.

[00:15:17] So imagine being an American tourist to Port-au-Prince and there's a taxi that's hovering off the ground like 12 inches. And because the road was built by Google, right? And then you just get it. There's no driver. You just tell it where you want it to go.

[00:15:33] And the car just hovers itself on to your hotel. Well, if you go to the beach and every inch of the country will have security. I have a vision for Haiti. And the biggest thing that I wanted to say is when you have to go to others and ask for money to do it, then your ideas might be a little cockamamie.

[00:15:53] But I'm coming with my own $3 billion. So I'm saying, you know what? I have a vision for Haiti. I love my people. So if other countries don't really want to see anything positive for Haiti, that's fine. It's not your responsibility. I'm putting my oath up for my people and I'm going to do for my people of Haiti.

[00:16:12] So the problem is that none of that can happen if people are still wielding their machetes and shooting their guns. None of that. The gangs have got to put those down. The people have to understand that they essentially surround the gangs. This is an entirely different mentality.

[00:16:29] Change the standard of living. Well, in order to change the standard of living, you've got to do more than just words to change the standard of living. You've got to give people opportunity. And where does opportunity come from? It comes from economy. It comes from commerce.

[00:16:45] This is what made America great. It was the ability to conduct commerce with each other, to conduct commerce with our international partners. And that is what makes these things possible. The people of Haiti have to know this.

[00:16:59] I mean, you've got to be screaming this from the hilltops and people have got to pay attention because nothing will happen unless they grasp this very simple concept.

[00:17:07] That's right. And, you know, the commercial nature of the country, we haven't really grasped that. And I will accept and take that.

[00:17:21] And we need to build on that. And it's because our staple export has been poverty. Our majority of it has been help from the diaspora and assistance from the United States government in the form of loans or humanitarian assistance.

[00:17:39] Has Haiti had a chief export that's left? We had in the past. We've had chalk, bauxite. But do we need that today? No. So we have to find something that is conducive with the times. Iridium. That's conducive with the times.

[00:17:55] So that it just takes organization. Now, one of the big things is we're not going to hire foreign people to come in to our country to extract our resources. We're going to hire Haitians to do that because that attributes to improving the standard of living.

[00:18:15] Now, regressing back to the gangs complaint. Their complaint has been the government is corrupt. They had money that was allocated for us and they didn't use the money appropriately. So we're mad. That's what it's all about.

[00:18:29] And so where I'm coming in is I'm saying, OK, I'm coming in from the outside. I'm coming in with my own funds and all I need you to do is to lower your guns long enough for me to prove to you that I have the best interest for Haiti in mind.

[00:18:49] But I can't get anything done if you're shooting up the streets. Right, OK, right. So so far it's going so far. It's going well. So far it's going well. Veevon some GS nine they were complaining that their representative was not on the nine member council.

[00:19:05] Now that number council was imposed on Haiti by car come the Caribbean community. Haiti didn't really we weren't there when it was negotiated with Secretary of State Blinken. We were no one was there. It was just Blinken and there was no Haitian that was there.

[00:19:22] So we had our future decided for us. So now we're trying to reorganize and pull what better not the party is organizing all the other parties. And I said, you know what, guys? I know what the mistake has been.

[00:19:36] Look at how these gangs, all of these gangs, what did they do? They united together into one gang. Veevon some. But you've got the government with all of these parties fighting. So you've got unity versus discombobulation.

[00:19:56] So I want to form power of the people party and everyone get with that one. The power of the people party will then hit the gangs. That's how we fix the country, because that's how the gangs overthrew. It was easy.

[00:20:19] You had a bunch of people united with guns against a whole bunch of people not united with no guns. Politicians aren't running around with they have the little pin and we have to go, you know, and we have our security.

[00:20:32] But you have to remember the gangs are the people. It's very easy as the American populace watching the news to look at it and say, oh, there's the gangs. And then we delineate the gangs and the people as two different entities.

[00:20:50] But we have to remember that they are the same ones. It's the frustration. The frustration is culminated. It started off with manifestations, then it transgressed to rock throwing and then it transgressed to kidnapping here and there.

[00:21:06] And then the whole entire government was overthrown. So we have to ask ourselves as the international community and as Haiti, the government who is really responsible for the gangs on the streets. And as the new president, I take responsibility for the country's mistakes.

[00:21:25] Well, like you said, I mean, asking for us to move forward from those mistakes. The gangs are the people. Those are your words. So are you talking about literally giving the gangs a complete pass?

[00:21:40] There are gang members that need to come to justice for what they've done. One of our largest partners and friends and allies and will always remain so is the United States. The United States has warrants out on a few that need to be served.

[00:21:57] Barbecue, who's a former police officer? His behavior is intolerable. He knows better. It regresses back to my initial statement. You ask them what's on the other side of the mountain. The other side of the mountain. They don't know. They're just doing what you know.

[00:22:14] But that doesn't that that ignorance is no excuse for what you know is right and wrong. Sending your men into a village to rape and pillage. That's wrong.

[00:22:23] That's not what you're trying to say to the government. You're trying to advocate against corruption, raping and shooting innocent children and women and people, citizens.

[00:22:34] That's wrong. There will be justice for that. But what I am saying is the majority of the straggler gang members, I'm giving you an opportunity to lay down your guns now.

[00:22:47] And I'm giving you an opportunity to care about the country that gave you birth. Regardless of the current situation, you show respect for the country and the flag.

[00:22:57] We are independent. We are not hooligans. We are not barbaric. We will behave as an independent people and as a civilized people. But what we must do is we must come together, all of us, as the power of the people and solve the crisis of Haiti together.

[00:23:17] Haitians can solve our problem, but it first is going to take us to stop killing each other, stop shooting. You have a government and a president that's listening to you.

[00:23:27] So there's no need to continue the manifestations. I'm listening, but I cannot listen if you will continue to cause destruction and chaos.

[00:23:36] And that's just it, because I believe, and obviously I'm just me here, but I believe that anything is possible when you have conditions for economic growth, for commerce.

[00:23:50] And so if you're able to achieve that and you're able to take advantage of your natural resources and put your people to work and get them to do commerce with themselves and everyone else peacefully, there's so much possibility.

[00:24:05] And I hope that the people of Haiti can really hear and understand your message and can see that there is something beyond the other side of the mountain. It's a tough sell unless you're able to show them what is on the other side of the mountain.

[00:24:21] And do you even have a plan or have some ideas to how to how to even explain what is on the other side of the mountain? I do. I do. And I've implemented that plan already.

[00:24:34] Our party is not a party of talk. We want to be a party of action, the most and best ability we can. And we sent down a substantial amount of funds to a few of the departments and we fed thousands of people over the weekend.

[00:24:55] And we have new party members signing up on the daily as we speak. And we are feeding the people because, you know, like I said, this humanitarian crisis has exponentially grown out in control.

[00:25:09] And we can we can say we need to bring this in and we need to bring that in. But if we can't just say, you know what, let's just do it, then nothing is going to happen. Someone has to just do it. And that's that's what I'm doing.

[00:25:24] So to demonstrate that there is another side of the mountain, I instead of saying there's another side of the mountain, I'm saying follow me. Follow me and I'll show you the other side of the mountain. I have a village prepared, but I need help building it.

[00:25:41] I need the gangs to work with the government because right now there's a new government. There's a new structure. There's a new party that is anti-corruption, that is anti-destruction of our people, of our natural way of life.

[00:26:04] And this new government, Pouva Pepla, we respect the sovereignty of Haitians. We understand the plight that Haitians are going through and we stand with you. We stand with you as brothers.

[00:26:19] We understand. And that is the reason why Pouva Pepla is standing here saying, let us just follow us. Follow us around the mountain. We will feed you along the way and we will feed you when you get there.

[00:26:31] But on this side of the mountain, there's nothing here for us. And we have to stop this infighting and realize there is nothing here.

[00:26:40] And you have to be able to give them a chance not just to where you're feeding them, but you've got to be able to give them a position or get the people to the point where they don't have to look to you for food, but where they can feed themselves.

[00:26:54] And I think that that's a very critical stage that you're not near yet, unfortunately. I'm going to propose something.

[00:27:05] And that is, as you continue to build and function within your government, if the people over there have never had a chance to take a look at the Federalist Papers, it's worth looking at.

[00:27:20] You know, one thing that I found in the Federalist Papers that I thought was absolutely fascinating and the thing that the United States got away from, which was a big mistake, and which created corruption here in the United States, is that we started paying our politicians.

[00:27:34] Originally, with the Federalists, they were arguing. It's all there. It's all documented. And they really wanted and started out our government where it was a part-time job and people were not paid because they recognized that if you're going to give people money and power, it will corrupt.

[00:27:51] You can give them power. We can give them money, but you can't give them money and power because that just gives tremendous corruption.

[00:27:58] And so they started out like that. And I don't know, maybe there is some way to structure some tasks within your government to where they are not full-time jobs where people are just going to be stealing and taking money and power.

[00:28:11] Just my suggestion, because I know it was something that worked for this country and we've gotten away from it and you can see what the difference is. Absolutely. You know, lobbying will always exist in every government structure.

[00:28:29] Lobbying is something that is unnecessary because the governments have become so clogged and bogged down. And it's something that we can't really control, but we can taper it to the best ability possible.

[00:28:50] That's why power of the people. We're giving the power to the people instead of the government and a select few running it. It's now, you know, the new parliament will have truly the voice of the people at heart and the people will have a direct elected government.

[00:29:11] So I'm very, very excited just to see the progress that the new government is making and our director generals down there in all of the departments signing up people.

[00:29:23] And we're keeping this as simple as possible. No corruption, no special interests. Just the interest is Haiti and Haiti only. The betterment of the Haitian people.

[00:29:35] You know, one thing that I've been wondering just from, I guess, a developmental perspective is in a position where you have a brand new government, right?

[00:29:51] You don't really have much of a structure at all. Yes. So what can you do or what will you be doing, I think is a better question, to streamline the function of government?

[00:30:06] Because government can run slow or government can run well better than slow. Government never runs fast.

[00:30:14] But what can be done to create those streamlines so that way you have a more effective government? Because you basically are starting out with a blank slate. Have you even considered that or thought about that or have any plans for that?

[00:30:27] Yes, simplicity. Simplicity in our government structure and in our size. There's no need to have an overbearing, overgrown government. For what? For what purpose?

[00:30:40] For what purpose? Just spending money in unnecessary avenues. Where instead, if we compartmentalize it to the department and let the departments, just like here in the United States, let the states handle their issues.

[00:30:54] Fund the states appropriately. Let them handle what they need to do. Have a small central government that handles the foreign affairs and imports and exports and takes care of the basic needs.

[00:31:06] But there's no need to be overbearing and have an overbearing, large stuffy government that's wasteful of taxpayer dollars. It's wasteful of, it's just not going to get anything done.

[00:31:17] Where you need to be on a fast track, rebuild Haiti mentality. And really the less crew members on the ship might make the ship a little bit lighter and we can add a few knots to our clique.

[00:31:35] So I'm hoping that perhaps that might be the better way to perceive it. Take it out of a naval term and put it to a political term.

[00:31:45] Okay. You don't currently get a lot of media attention. I see media attention very heavily focused on what is happening to Donald Trump in New York. I see media attention on what has Joe Biden eaten with his latest round of ice cream shop visits.

[00:32:08] I see media attention for Ukraine. I see media attention for Israel. I don't really see much at all about Haiti. Is that a good thing right now or a bad thing?

[00:32:22] It's a good and bad thing because no, we don't necessarily want the world to know how bad everything is. But at the same time, the world needs to know so they know how to help us.

[00:32:33] You know, and so where we're at right now, Haiti just needs to, we need to just stand together and unite. Unite a little bit better than we have, a lot better than we have.

[00:32:47] And also push forward in a sense of camaraderie and patriotism. Because then and only then can we bring the change that we're really wanting. But it's not going to, like I said, it's not going to happen while we're continuing the status quo of killing each other.

[00:33:07] And to answer the press, I don't think the media really wants to talk about something that's just been an ongoing, you know, I'm going to just hit it where it would be factual. Haiti is a situation that's just we know.

[00:33:25] You know, and I want to change that to more of a, okay, we know you know, but look at what the government's doing to change that. So it's not a we know, but a wow, look at what the new president's down there. Now that's interesting. That's different. That's what I'm looking for.

[00:33:44] So as we progress, the press will notice the press will notice the changes. I'm not expecting praise from the press. I know that the media is going to come up with their own ideas of my presidency.

[00:34:01] But all I can do is just operate in trustworthiness, operate in an honor and commit all my commitment to the Haitian people. That's that's the number one. That's what every leader should do. It's not this isn't a race to see who looks the best.

[00:34:21] It's a race to see who can get the job done quickest. So a final question here.

[00:34:29] You know, obviously you're on one of the greatest programs that ever existed and everyone who is listening and watching don't forget you got to hit the subscribe button that's hit the subscribe button give it five stars and the lesson five stars and give us a great review because it's so important.

[00:34:43] But obviously people from around the world are watching me. Why wouldn't they want to right? Of course, we all agree. So you're speaking to the world at the same time as you're speaking to the Haitian people. You have two different entities that you are speaking to.

[00:35:02] What would be the last thing that you'd want them to hear on the most important program you've ever been on? Maché pour famille. Maché pour tout le monde. Maché pour tous les garçons. Maché pour toutes les filles. Maché pour la République. Maché.

[00:35:24] The Republic of Haiti is strong. Those who are watching that are Haitian, you are strong. You obtained your sovereignty in 1804 from the blood sweat and tears of our forefathers and you understand what it took to stand today and be able to watch this show today.

[00:35:47] So all I am asking you to do is to stand united as a Haitian. I'm not for contribution. I'm asking for you to stand in patriotism. We as Haitians need to stand together more so than ever.

[00:36:03] The children rely on it. Our future relies on it. You rely on it and I rely on it. So let's stand for a stable Haiti and we will obtain it because we are Haitian. And we will always be Haitians.

[00:36:23] Well, Mr. President, thank you so much for joining me today. I really appreciate it and I would like to be able to follow up with you as time progresses if that's okay with you.

[00:36:33] And so that way we can see how things are going in Haiti as you make progress. My last message to the United States. I'm here as an ally and a friend.

[00:36:44] I'm standing here to work with you. I'm standing here with my hand out just as you go to take someone's hand. It's extended. Let's work together. Let's bring a new Haiti and bring a better future for our children.