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Politics roil voter awareness youth group
A youth voter-awareness group may have succumbed to a case of “politics” this election season, which may cause them to dissolve, according to group adviser Irene Tantiado of MILE CNMI.
Tantiado is contesting a MILE press release endorsing the gubernatorial and now runoff candidates Heinz Hofschneider and Ray Yumul. The statement was released while she was off-island.
Tantiado said she and other core members of the group were not informed of the decision made by board chair Angel Ichihara, adviser Ronnie Doca, and other members to endorse Hofschneider.
The topic of endorsement did come up at group meetings but they chose not to endorse a candidate out of respect to their differing opinions, she said.
“We’re trying to keep the group clear of these things,” she said.
In the press release, Doca is described as “the adviser for the group” who “was pleased that its members were able to decide amongst themselves on who[m] to endorse.”
Tantiado said she has had zero response from the Docas since the release.
It is unclear which member of the group wrote the endorsement. Doca contacted both of the island’s newspapers with the statement.
Ichihira said the “majority of the group” voted to endorse Hofschneider at a meeting a week prior to the election. However, Tantiado contests this “majority” that Ichihira claims. She said six core members were not aware of Ichihara’s decision.
One of them, MILE secretary Aaron Cabug, confirmed he and other core members never endorsed such a decision.
“We are somehow becoming political. We are happy with AJ going to the radio [to support Heinz], but not using MILE,” he said.
He believes if MILE were to endorse a candidate, all members should have supported the decision.
Tantiado hopes to sit down with Doca, Ichihara and the rest of MILE when she returns this week.
She hopes the group will agree that the endorsement was not “official.” If not, the group would dissolve or she would leave as adviser, she said.
