‘Nothing illegal about car leases’

From hauling trash to the Marpi landfill, to carrying picnic tables to rosaries and novenas, to ferrying Neighborhood Watch members from site to site. That’s how ubiquitous and useful House Speaker Eli D. Cabrera’s (Rep-Saipan) Ford Ranger pickup truck is to his constituents in Precinct 1.

That’s why Lisa Matagolai is very appreciative of Cabrera’s help and attests to how the speaker’s leased vehicle has made life easier in their village.

“If someone dies and there is a rosary, the speaker is always there to help. Also people with handicap and people who need their trash thrown at the landfill, the speaker and his staff are always there to assist,” she said.

For her, transportation provided by Cabrera’s leased pickup is one of his biggest contributions to the community.

“Whoever is thinking of taking these leased vehicles away, I don’t think it is right. I suggest the governor and the Legislature first look into government agencies using luxury vehicles instead of using these for community service,” said Matagolai.

With backing from constituents like Matagolai, Cabrera led a number of lawmakers who yesterday justified with the Saipan Tribune their use of taxpayer-paid leased vehicles.

Cabrera said lawmakers are doing nothing illegal when they pay $400 to $700 in car leases each month.

“We get members allocation—a budget. We are entitled to use the money the way we see fit to operate the office,” he said.

Besides, the $4,800 to $8,400 a year allocated for automobile rentals is a small drop in the bucket, considering that each lawmaker gets more than $70,000 each year for office operational expenses.

Cabrera said he doesn’t even drive the leased truck, opting to use his own private car to commute from his house to work and back to dispense his official functions at the Legislature.

“I let my community workers use the pickup truck. That’s day and night, including weekends. If somebody dies, they call my house. If they need someone to throw garbage to the landfill they call, ‘Mr. Speaker, can you help us throw our trash.’ We also deliver picnic tables to rosaries, novenas. …Any given time they ask us for something, we are there to help,” he said.

Cabrera said his Toyota Matrix could just not do the job of a Ford Ranger, hence his decision to lease the vehicle.

“When you lease a car, deep down in your heart you want to do something to your community. Not to drive an SUV [sport utility vehicle]. Not to drive a luxury car,” said Cabrera. “I’m one of the members that’s leasing one of the least expensive vehicles. You cannot find anything under $500 at Joeten Motors. You can find others renting $700, but I don’t need a $700 car. I just need a pickup.”

He said he also owns two trailers that he hooks up to the pickup truck, increasing the car’s capacity to haul garbage and other materials for the precinct.

Rep. Ray Yumul (Rep-Saipan) pointed out that if lawmakers leasing cars is against the law, Procurement & Supply would have disapproved it and the Department of Finance wouldn’t have processed the payment. Yumul himself doesn’t use his allocation to lease a car. Instead, he uses his own Toyota Rav4 to carry out his official duties.

Rep. Froilan C. Tenorio (Cov-Saipan) said that lawmakers leasing vehicles is the Legislature’s way of stimulating the private sector.

“Imagine the money we’re giving the car dealers because of car leases,” he told Saipan Tribune. “What difference does it [car leases] make? We’re getting the same allotment. The fact is, it’s the same amount all of us are spending.”

For his part, Rep. Raymond Palacios (Cov-Saipan) said he uses his taxpayer-paid leased vehicle to and from work. He also sometimes lends it to his secretary and community worker.

Like Cabrera, Palacios said there’s nothing wrong with car leases as long as they are within the congressman’s budget and is used for work.

For Rep. Ramon A. Tebuteb (R-Saipan) he justified his use of a Nissan truck in his efforts to promote and improve sports and cultural tourism in the CNMI.

“As you may already be aware I am presently the president of NMA [Northern Marianas Athletics] under the OAA [Oceania Athletic Association] affiliated with IAAF [International Association of Athletics Federations]. We receive financial and other OAA and IAAF regional and international developmental opportunities,” he said.

Tebuteb also said he is a board member of a non-profit team (a 501c3) with the mission of tourism development in the CNMI. He said they also avail grant opportunities to foster their goals and objectives.

“Recently, we were able to partner with our Russian and Korean filmmaking promoters to promote the spirit of the CNMI. It’s an ongoing community involvement of this office,” he said in an email to the Saipan Tribune.