Day after Christmas

The evening was dimmed by fearful dark cloud gathering out east. I settled in my chair to begin reviewing bookmarked materials to see the lowering of the curtain before calling it a night. Reading is a daily routine before I turn to scribbling.

The wall of competition has slowly moved into these pearly isles. Troubling their eventual effects on a fragile island economy built largely on happenstance. In other words, the suspect “improvement” is not the result of a fully thought-out NMI plan. Thus, improvement is suspect!

When the Japanese casino industry takes off, it would adversely affect similar industry here. After all, Japan’s infrastructure or economic acumen is far superior, mature, and sophisticated than the perceptual economy of the islands. A further contraction to the local economy is the fact that Japanese tourists are headed to the Aloha State. Isn’t this a subtle message of “sayonara” from pioneers of investments here in the ’60s?

There’s a good chance that when revenue shrinks, most of the programs under the casino law would suffer heavy cuts too. This is the issue that the elected elite must be mindful of given the challenges it presents hence. Are there alternatives to sustaining perceived growth?

Introspectively, the order for Macau to begin economic diversification started making more sense to me. President Xi Jinpiñg must have seen how the new casino industry in Japan would grab a good portion of the gambling revenues from the enclave, not to mention the added competition from regional casino binge.

Ironically, the same should be done here. It means the use of the digital age to reset buttons to improve upon other sectors that would sustain what we have now. Negligence isn’t the answer.

The poker syndrome must go, including our grand mañana singing Que Sera. It’s good to be on the safe side of caution, guarding tiny improvements as investments fade right behind it. Not favorable when we finally buckle down to reality check.

Celebratory self-congratulations of “economic improvement” are perceptual at best, a feel good fallacy at worse. How would perceptual improvements be strengthened amidst tidings of major cuts coming from D.C. next year? Isn’t it true that for every cut, it means the NMI shoulders the cost? Do we have the financial capability to cushion cuts in Medicaid, food stamps and other entitlement programs?

Attribution: Since years ago I’ve treaded issues and events unfolding if only to understand their meaning and likely results when the curtain is lowered. This is what “attribution” is all about.

If you use it to the hilt, you would have learned that your trusting view like the Trump presidency is highly suspect. Trump is out to fulfill his promise to millions of blue-collar workers who need jobs. The Republican-controlled Congress has set its agenda to reduce the $20 trillion federal deficit.

That the NMI simply failed to tax Best Sunshine’s income of $13.5 billion is more the reason for Washington to render the NMI dead fish in the water on entitlement and other federally funded programs. Washington knows the NMI raked in billions from its casino industry!

Deficit dancing: While boastfully trumpeting a $43.3 million new income, Raffy subsequently announced a cumulative deficit of $53 million or a $10 million shortage. How come the $779 million owed the old retirement program wasn’t included? Its exclusion doesn’t absolve Raffy from paying it up nor would it improve loan rating for the islands in bond markets.

It goes to show that the financial posture of the NMI is far serious than half-cocked politicians are willing to admit. This is bad all around as we close out 2016.

Appropriation: When the Legislature surrenders its constitutionally provided authority to appropriate by allowing departments and agencies to borrow on their own, it would seem to me such action is unconstitutional.

It’s an abrogation of constitutional mandate that equally prevents legislators from reviewing how borrowed funds are spent. Why would you shirk constitutional fiduciary duty? What good is your role if this authority is left to agencies to willfully dispose of your fiduciary duty? Isn’t the budget review process the right time to gauge agency performance?

Obligations: The debts of the NMI with the old retirement program (known as employer’s contribution) are around $779 million. I wonder why Raffy skipped including this figure in the cumulative deficit of the NMI? Whether you dodge it, skip it, or avoid it, it remains a debt of the NMI government.

Really sad how perceptual experts on pension program ruin the old system in favor of two confused programs: defined contribution and defined benefit. I think the intent is to kill the old system. They did! But it haunts the NMI given a huge sum of money it owes the program. Guess it’s okay to destroy it then head off somewhere and blame others for your mess, right?

Then there’s the $10.3 million owed PSS. Again, there was an agreed scheme to use federal funds for PSS to meet retirement and government payrolls. It was done with the understanding that the administration shoulders utility debts for PSS. The money was spent but the administration failed on its end of the bargain. Isn’t PSS the institution of learning for some 12,000 to 15,000 students?

No wonder the emergence of a popular expression, “Not yet, already!” This is what we tell any Tom, Dick and Harry when quizzed if the NMI has paid PSS, CUC, CDA, etc. Hell, if I tell this to CUC I’d be without power in less than 24 hours! Seesuzzzz!