Kilili plans to tackle higher education, CW issues

Delegate Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan (Ind-MP) and his wife Andrea have their picture taken after voting at the Garapan Elementary School. (Erwin Encinares)

Although serving the CNMI as its delegate in Congress is a privilege, Delegate Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan (Ind-MP) believes he must step up his game in order to not disappoint.

“I feel privileged and humbled but at the same time I do not take the people’s vote for granted. I did some campaigning throughout this season as well. This probably gives me even more reason to work harder. In the next Congress, there are things that still need fixing and things that need to be done, and I’d like to see these things get done,” he said.

Sablan, who shared with Saipan Tribune yesterday his feelings about running unopposed in the 2016 midterm elections, plans to tackle the re-authorization of the Higher Education Act, which has been in the works for quite a while.

Sablan eyes the complete passage of the bill with the help of the CNMI’s lone community college, the Northern Marianas College.

“We could now start to work on those things that we need to negotiate on to develop a complete bill. That one, of course, is legislation that affects higher education and thus I have reached out to the Northern Marianas College and we’ve been having conversations,” he said.

Sablan also plans to tackle the ongoing CW crisis. While recognizing the need for more workers, Sablan plans to coordinate with the Government Accountability Office to look into the minimum wage while also looking to address the CW problems in the CNMI.

“The issue of our need for third country national workers is something that, unfortunately, we continue to need. We’re working with the governor. In April the Government Accountability Office will issue a report on the minimum wage but we’ve also asked them to look a little bit into the need for workers from [other] countries,” said Sablan.

Sablan also eyes comprehensive immigration reform in order to accommodate CW workers who have remained loyal to the CNMI for decades.

“If we could do a comprehensive immigration reform, there would be a situation where we would be able to wean ourselves from bringing new workers into the Commonwealth because we already have people who have been here for a long time working. I want to make sure that they remain here,” said Sablan.

“Not just based on that, but if the parents remain here with their children, who we have educated and are U.S. citizens, will continue to make the CNMI their home. Those are two things that are on the top of my head. There are several others that we would have to consider,” he added.

Sablan recognizes the CNMI’s need for CWs, but is with Gov. Ralph DLG Torres in pushing forward with using H-2 visas.

“The governor and I are in the same position that construction workers should apply for H-2 visas. Those that are here for those new projects must understand that those are temporary projects. Once these jobs are done, they should return back to their country,” said Sablan.

“Unfortunately they didn’t even heed the governor’s call and so we need to do something because we have what we call legacy workers. People have been here for a long time. People who clean our hospitals, the nurses up there, bakers at Herman’s Bakery and other bakeshops, the people who clean the hotel rooms, and the people at the front desk [just to name a few], we still need them,” he added.

Sablan thinks that slightly adjusting the fiscal year 2017 CW cap immediately will improve the situation of foreign workers and immigration situation in the CNMI.

“We need to find a way to adjust something immediately for fiscal year 2017 while we work on the larger bill of not just immigration reform but also our situation here in the CNMI in terms of CWs.

“We have a plan but I prefer to keep this plan close to my chest because I still need to reach out to some of my colleagues and educate them. I would like to say that the governor and his staff have been true partners in this and we are working together in trying to find a solution to this problem that will benefit and continue to contribute to keeping our economy moving and growing,” said Sablan.

Sablan has been in office for the past four terms since 2008 and has been continuously elected for five consecutive terms, including the 2016 midterm elections.