‘Blaming JGO for his legal fees is disrespectful to Constitution’

Rep. Celina Babauta (D-Saipan), who chairs the House of Representatives’ Judiciary and Governmental Operations Committee, issued the following in response to Gov. Ralph DLG Torres’ statement last Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022:

“Gov. Torres’s attempt to blame the JGO Committee for over $121,000 in legal fees is utterly disrespectful to our Constitution. It is a perfect example of his failure to take responsibility for his actions and emblematic of his habit of blaming everyone but himself for his misconduct in office.

“We dispute the governor’s contention that the JGO is to blame for these private attorney expenses. Although $121,000 in legal fees is significant, the cost to the Commonwealth’s reputation is something much harder to quantify.

Celina R. Babauta

“To issue a press release blaming the JGO, for his spending thousands of dollars of public funds to defend his clear abuses of power, while in the performance of its constitutional role is not only delusional but disrespectful to the CNMI Constitution. Insuttu, tai respettu, yan na’mamahlao para guiya para hu sigi sumotne otro taotao pot i malabidådåña ni i salape’ publiko. What was the public benefit in seeing witness after witness protect the governor at the expense of their own good name? Blaming the JGO for the army of lawyers and their fees, incurred by his administration, is an insult to the intelligence of every taxpayer who is footing the bill for these lawyers who sat by and watched as their clients embarrassed themselves and hurt their own reputations. Perhaps the governor is starting to believe his own lies. Make no mistake, he cannot fool all the people all the time.

“Throughout its investigation, the JGO Committee has respected the right for witnesses to have legal representation. We repeatedly assured the witnesses that they are not the subject of our investigation. In fact, the public has seen how patient and accommodating we all have been in terms of making interpreters available at the eleventh hour, allowing counsels to give advice to their client during the proceedings, and making the process as courteous and efficient as possible. We feel for the witnesses who were obviously pressured into silence and memory failure.

“By refusing to testify under oath and sending his subordinates to fight his fight, the governor disrespects the basic constitutional principle of checks and balances. His betrayal of the public trust and his blatant abuse of public funds is also disrespectful. We, the Legislature, cannot ignore our duty to ensure that the public’s money is spent according to the statutes and regulations in place to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse of scarce public funds. His record of yearly deficits, now at $314,611,000, since he has been in office, is a testament to his apathetic attitude regarding money that does not belong to him; allowing his utility bills to be in arrears up to $119,000 without disconnection, having the public pay for the water usage for his brother’s piggery. If this be his only legacy, he should be ashamed of himself.”

In response to the governor’s statement, “the hearings did not materialize to any concrete reasons for my impeachment,” esta ha daggen mamaisa gue’.

“The governor has, time and time again, stated how much he wanted to appear when his number came up. I want to remind the governor that the JGO Committee held him in contempt for intentionally refusing to appear before the committee. He had a duty to comply with the subpoena, just as all the other witnesses complied. What makes him above the law? He was also invited to testify under oath in the absence of a subpoena and despite there being a law that requires him, as a public official, to comply with all investigations, with or without a subpoena, he refused to appear. He has no shame. He has no respect.

“Do you still actually believe that you have nothing to hide? If so, here is some free advice: quit playing games and agree, once and for all, to testify under oath. Until then, stop the press releases, stop the taxpayer funded video interviews, and stop embarrassing yourself and the Commonwealth.

“In the end, the governor’s press release last Wednesday was nothing short of the typical gamesmanship to deflect his penchant for Bose speakers, Nikon cameras, GoPros, and foie gras.” (PR)