16713: Karshan: Speech by Pres. Aristide: The light of 30 megawatts and the light of literacy (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: MKarshan@aol.com

Speech from the President of the Republic, His Excellency Jean-Bertrand
Aristide, on the occasion of his visit for the inauguration of Varreux-3, that
produces 30 megawatts more of electricity.

Varreux Power Station

I would like start by giving the Haitian People a special greeting.

To the authorities present here and to our American friends.

Today is September 8th, it is World Literacy Day. It is education. We are
here together to give a big encouragement for the great work that is being done
here. On this September 8th, which is the first day of school, school is light,
alpha is light, those 30 megawatts are light.

I congratulate all the people who put their hands together to give those 30
megawatts. I thank everybody in Cité Soleil, starting with Cité Soleil's
magistrate who is here, all other citizens in Cité Soleil who collaborated for the
accomplishment of this work. The sun is light. The light of understanding of
people in Cité Soleil helped us get 30 megawatts to give light!

On this first day of school, many parents still don't see the light of money
that would make them happier.

If the State paid 60 gourdes on every 100 gourdes the parents spent last
year, this year, despite the embargo, we increase that amount. On every 100
gourdes a parent spends to send his child to school, the State pays 70 gourdes.
Subsidy is the light of solidarity, the light of understanding. On this Literacy
Day, if many people who still don't know how to read feel they are blind, with
these 30 megawatts, it is a great joy that we give all parents who don't know
how to read, don't know how to write: the guarantee that the light of literacy
will not go out. We will work with them so that it is seen throughout the
country.

On this September 8th, I would like to compare and see the difference there
is between the light of those 30 megawatts and the light coming from the sun,
since we are standing in front of Cité Soleil.

When the scientists look at the sun, they see a bright face that is called
photosphere. The light that comes from the sun takes about 8 minutes to reach
the Earth. You can see why I am comparing this day, the 8th, with the time the
light from the sun takes to reach the Earth. Everytime you think of this day
that I came to inaugurate those 30 additional megawatts on September 8th, you
will remember it was in Cité Soleil. And you will remember that the light from
the sun takes about 8 minutes to reach the Earth.

Just the same, the Earth turns around the sun. It is not the sun that turns
around the Earth. It is the Earth that turns around the sun.

How long does it take the Earth to turn around the sun?

We are inaugurating 30 megawatts. As a coincidence, the Earth goes 30
kilometers per second to turn around the sun. Everytime you think of this
inauguration of the 30 megawatts in front of Cité Soleil, you will remember how long it
takes the Earth per second to turn around the sun.

All this to say that knowledge is light, knowledge is wealth.

We are working so that all the sons and daughters of the land of Haiti have
more light of knowledge so they know how to read, know how to write, as Alpha
gives good results, so they have a lot of light of knowledge in their heads
when they have money to go to school, to do great studies.

In this same state of mind, we can already see how it will be great because
there will be even more light before next year, since with those foreigners who
are here, we, the Haitian State, will work together. We already paid what is
needed so that another 50 megawatts is installed in Lafito. There is a big
foreign company called Rolls Royce. When it works together with scientists such
as the ones who are here, it allows us to give more megawatts to have more
light.

What I decided to wish you on the beginning of the new school year, on this
Literacy Day, is that if the factory gives light, if the sun gives light, we,
who live on Earth, are the ones who should give the First Light.

May all Haiti's men,

May all Haiti's women,

May we all be the Light of Haiti, Light of this land of freedom so that, with
education through the literacy campaign, through our schools, we can shine to
chase out the darkness of ignorance and that of violence.

That is my wish for the entire Haitian people.

While we work to strengthen the light that is already 24 hours a day in the
North, we will give electricity meters to all the people in the North who don't
have one yet so that they get light 24 hours a day. We have 120,000,000
gourdes for that.

We will do the same, there is already electricity 24 hours a day, and we will
put more meters so that more people can enjoy electricity 24 hours a day in
the South.

The South-East has electricity 24 hours a day. A part of the West like
Petit-Goâve, Grand-Goâve, Fauche. If Fauche doesn't have it yet, it's getting there.
Petit-Goâve and Grand-Goâve have electricity 24 hours a day.

The rest of the West will also get it 24 hours a day. Without forgetting the
Artibonite, the Central Plateau, the Northeast, the Northwest. All the other
departments will get it too.

As you can see, Lavalas' philosophy is that all people are people. That's
why, with decentralization, we start by giving electricity 24 hours a day in the
provinces and not in Port-au-Prince. Now we will attack Port-au-Prince. Next
year, at this time, there will be many more megawatts.

I truly hope that on this day, September 8th, you remember that the light of
the sun takes about 8 minutes to reach the Earth, and since we are light, we,
men and women, can shed this light 24 hours a day.

Thank you.