Leonel Fernández, was reported in El Caribe last week as disregarding the statement made by his principal contender, José Francisco Peña Gómez, the presidential candidate of the PRD, in a political rally held in Santiago, that the election will decide whether low born men such as himself have the right to reach the presidency of the Dominican Republic. On the contrary, said Dr Fernández, what will be decided in the next election is whether the Dominican Republic continues to stagnate in under-development, in backwardness and misery, or whether it accepts to enter the new millennium as a member of the group of the world’s civilized nations. “We understand that what is up for debate is not the particular situation of an individual, but the destiny of the nation,” said Leonel Fernández.
He asked President Balaguer to suspend the repatriation of illegally resident Haitians until after the electoral process, to avoid arguments by some groups that there is a racial element in the election.
He said that the country does not have a racial problem but rather a social problem. He said that those with money enjoy better attention and services, regardless of the color of their skin. He said that the PLD has never been opposed to blacks voting in the election, but has opposed the participation of foreigners from any country. He said what has occurred is just a case of an extraordinary manipulation of his words.
Leonel Fernández has said that a sampling of the voting list showed there was a large number of foreigners registered as Dominicans.