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A couple of questions
I read with great interest the articles in today’s newspapers about the governor’s announcement to award “CNMI retirees” a $500 “bonus” for Christmas and to provide “each Commonwealth Utilities Corp. residential account holder a $500 voucher.”
I have a couple of questions.
1. Who is a CNMI retiree? The governor probably means those retirees receiving funds from the NMI Settlement Fund. But wait, he’s using U.S. taxpayer dollars. I, like many others, am a U.S. taxpayer and a CNMI retiree, though I receive no funds from the Settlement Fund. Am I on the select list of “CNMI retirees”? I suspect that I am not but I also think a little clarity is in order.
2. What exactly, is the source of this funding? In one article the governor is reported as saying, “We put [these funds] aside and we worked on it [so that the] funds that we’re using would not hamper any federal regulations.” I noticed that in the article he is not quoted as saying using the funds does not violate any federal regulation.
There are so many things that can’t seem to get done in the CNMI because of funding issues or bureaucratic issues or political issues, but somehow the CNMI government can magically find $9.8 million to distribute to voters 11 months before an election. Just saying.
John H. Davis
Fina Sisu, Saipan
