Rota not represented in bicameral budget talks

Rota is not represented in the joint conference committee that is tasked to deliberate the Fiscal Year 2017 CNMI budget. The committee convened at 1:30pm in a closed-door meeting in hopes of reaching an agreement to finally pass the budget. The budget talks were still ongoing as of press time last night.

Senate President Francisco M. Borja (Ind-Tinian) appointed Senate vice president Arnold I. Palacios (R-Saipan), majority leader Steve K. Mesngon (R-Rota), and Sen. Jude U. Hofschneider (R-Tinian)—being the Fiscal Affairs Committee chair—as Senate conferees.

Sen. Francisco Q. Cruz (R-Tinian) is an alternate member and sat on the Senate panel as Mesngon was still off-island when they met yesterday.

House Speaker Rafael S. Demapan (R-Saipan) named vice speaker Joseph P. Deleon Guerrero (Ind-Saipan), Rep. Felicidad T. Ogumoro (R-Saipan)—who replaced House Ways and Means committee chair Rep. Antonio P. Sablan (Ind-Saipan) being the vice chair—and Rep. Anthony T. Benavente (Ind-Saipan) as their counterparts. Antonio P. Sablan is on leave after the passing of his mother.

Sen. Paul A. Manglona (Ind-Rota) said the Senate’s leadership somewhat neglected this issue. He decided to attend the meeting on his own where he asked both panels if he could participate as a regular member of the Senate and as Rota representative.

“I asked former [House] speaker [Deleon Guerrero] if my participation in the meeting would be the same as a committee member. But he said that it is a Senate matter and should be addressed in the Senate. I want the people to know that this is not something to be taken lightly. A member from the Senate should be representing Rota,” Manglona told Saipan Tribune in a telephone interview.

Manglona added that the Senate knew beforehand that Mesngon would be going off-island, but was still appointed as a conferee. He said that Cruz, the alternate, is from Tinian not Rota. “Is he [Cruz] accountable from the people of Rota? It is astounding that he would recommend that a Tinian senator sit in his stead during his absence when there clearly are two available senators from Rota that could have been appointed.

Sen. Teresita Santos (R-Rota) also hails from Rota.

This would be the first time that no one from Rota is a member of the bicameral committee since it has been a tradition that all three Senatorial districts are represented.

“I was surprised when I saw the memo. I emphasize that having each Senatorial district represented is important in the budget conference committee. I also wanted to raise concerns from Rota,” added Manglona.

He then wrote a two-page letter to Borja where he raised his concern why no one from the Senate’s Rota Delegation was a member of the conference committee. He said preparing a balanced budget has been the most important part of being a legislator.

“This involves creating a government spending plan for various government agencies. It is very important that the voices of our people living on each of our islands be heard through their representatives,” Manglona wrote on his letter.

Manglona even informed the conferees that Mesngon was still off-island and he or Sen. Teresita Santos are willing to take the Senate majority leader’s place to participate in the committee meeting. He then asked Borja to appoint him or Santos as a representative from Rota until Mesngon returns to Saipan.

“Once more, I am respectfully requesting that you appoint Sen. Santos or myself to the committee until Sen. Mesngon returns to the Commonwealth. We only have nine days to put a budget together, and we should welcome all participation,” Manglona said.