By B.B
For Horizon

Last week I attended a meeting at the Capital called by the Land Court’s mediation program, so while there I took the opportunity to tour the building facilities and the surrounding grounds of our Capital. Everything was impressive. Located on high ground at Ngerulmud Hill, the Capital overlooks the Eastern shore of Babeldaob and you could see Tap-Riwal to the North and the rock islands of Oikull to the South. To the West and the Northwest, you could see the top of the ridges that surround Ngaremlengui and Ngardmau states. The smooth Compact Road passes nearby, making trips to the Capital, either from the North or from the South, very convenient and enjoyable.
The new capital might have another advantage for our public leaders and for us as well, which would only become obvious as time goes on. Working together in close proximity to each other, the politicians at the OEK and the officials of the Executive Branch would have no choice but to be civil to one another, otherwise life on Ngerulmud Hill would be unbearable. Before, a lagoon separating Koror and Meyuns kept the two groups apart, but now the solons would be rubbing shoulders with one another as they go about their daily businesses. They would find it much easier and more beneficial to have friendly chats in the coffee shop than to hurl accusations at each other from a distance.
Yes, almost everything was looking fine at the Capital. While walking along the outer walkways of the complex, I began tapping on what appeared to be impressive Doric-style marble columns that support the buildings of the facility. What I heard surprised me. It was a hollow sound, indicating that the columns were not of pure marble which they appear to be, but were only covered by something that looks like marble. As I repeated my tapping on other columns for confirmation of what I heard, a security officer passing by explained the strange sound I heard. "They are not made entirely of marble, like the ones we see in the pictures of Washington D.C. or Rome. The outer layer is probably made of plastic or some similar materials. That’s why it sounds hollow when you knock on it. I do not know what kind of materials make up the inner part of the column", the security officer said.
Plastic or some similar materials holding together the pillars that support our Capital? That, indeed, is an uncomfortable thought. I am sure, however, that the engineers who designed the Capital and our own officials who approved their work knew what they were doing. They must have had complete confidence in the strength and integrity of the materials used in the building of the Capital. Just the same, we are uncomfortable with the thought that "plastic or some similar materials" are holding together whatever it is that props up the capital buildings.
Can the Capital complex survive an earthquake similar in strength as those that frequently occur in areas south of Palau? With its exposed location high on a hill, can the entire structure survive the strong winds of typhoons that strike Palau every once in a while? We hope our Government would assure us that our Capital at Ngerulmud could withstand these potential calamities. They should also tell us what those columns that prop up the Capital complex were made from.