By Sen Judi Guthertz
For Variety

SEVERAL years ago, in December of 2003, the 27th Legislature passed and the governor signed into law Bill No. 137, which became Public Law 27-60, authorizing the board of directors of the Jose D. Leon Guerrero Port Authority of Guam to partnership lease agreement for terminal operations and maintenance. Senator Randy Cunliffe sponsored the original bill, and he fought for it with good intentions.
Public-private partnerships are nothing new for the Government of Guam. We have tried implementing them for years, in small and very large ways. Perhaps the most successful was when several private companies partnered with the Guam Power Authority in the mid-’90s to rescue our island from load shedding. It was an arrangement that developed several new base load power plants for our island and provided extensive and much-needed training for many of our employees. Both the Legislature and the Administration were on the same page when it came to fixing our power problems, and the people of Guam benefited tremendously. The public-private partnership model brought in private interests and capital to invest in Guam’s future – a true “win-win” for both our island and the participating businesses.
A big public-private partnership failure happened at the Guam Waterworks Authority. GWA saw what GPA had accomplished and tried to emulate their success by establishing a public-private partnership of their own. This was about seven or eight years ago, when they sought private investment to upgrade our island’s ailing water system through a plan called the “Strategic Initiative.” Unfortunately for the people of Guam, the Legislature was thinking politically instead of strategically, and more interested in attacking the GWA board chairman than in improving our island’s dilapidated water and wastewater systems. We didn’t make badly needed improvements, and our water system, although very slowly improving, is still not where it should be. When politics reared its ugly head, there was no “win-win” for Guam and private investors.
When Senator Cunliffe introduced Bill 137, he intended for good things to happen at the Port Authority. Like many GovGuam agencies, the Port Authority needs to attract investment, and private interests could be found to provide some capital. Senator Cunliffe intended that a public-private partnership would modernize port operations, infuse much-needed capital, provide advanced training, and ensure our lifeline to the world continues operating smoothly.
It seems that the administration and port management has plans other than continued smooth operations. Management seems to be more interested in creating a privately run port than in forming a public-private partnership. Some employees believe that the actions taken over the past few months are moves toward trying to fully privatize the port. There seems to be a concerted effort to portray the employees of the port as inefficient and their services substandard.
Apparently in contradiction to the law and personnel rules and regulations, board members are interfering with established procedures, and turning their backs on the port’s employees. Morale at the port is being affected, and there appears to be a serious lack of trust between management and personnel.
Now, we understand that the board may have delayed moving forward on the new gantry crane even though the process has already met the approval of the attorney general, and a lending institution and the federal government are standing by with the funding.
This alleged micromanagement by board members could be catastrophic for the people of Guam. We have to continue to move forward with the gantry crane, the board must keep its nose out of day-to-day operations, and our only seaport must continue to stay where it belongs –– in government hands.