The vice speaker wanted to know “what was the basis for that?” She said the number was “too high.” The House minority leader, alas, chimed in. He asked if USCIS could adjust the figure.
Clearly, some of the honorables on Capital Hill, once again, did not do their homework, but their meeting with USCIS was covered by the media — a TV camera was there — and they were eager to show voters how concerned their elected officials were for the welfare of their constituents. But why speak in public if you do not know what you’re talking about?
It was theFitial administration that provided the 22,417 figure based on its estimate as of May 2008. Even back then, the number was considered unrealistic. Still, it was, and still is, just a cap. It doesn’t mean that CNMI businesses, or what’s left of them, should hire over 22,000 CW’s.
The CNMI Constitution allows each lawmaker to receive $155,000 in annual discretionary funds. That’s the cap. Are they getting that amount? Of course not. Because nating pera.
The CW limit could have been 30,000 or 40,000 and it still would not result in the hiring of more guest workers. Politicians tend to forget that the private sector, unlike the government, can neither ignore nor defy economic realities. A company will only hire workers it needs. It is the government that hires more than it should.
What lawmakers should have asked is, how many guest workers are left and if any of them are still working 80 hours per pay period?
This bad economy is getting worse but some lawmakers are still saying what you want to hear while doing nothing to solve anything. When b.s. fails, they resort to…more b.s. Right now, they’re using nonresidents and the feds as scapegoats for their leadership failures. If they really care about their constituents, then these elected officials should be finding ways to improve the CNMI business climate. Instead, they want to raise taxes and fees. They should be protecting critical public services. Instead, they continue to award jobs and contracts to supporters. They should be considering new livelihood or small business opportunities for the people. Instead they want a casino on Saipan — and a second political status commission. They say they’re “concerned” about the impact of the worker rule. But instead of working with the feds to ensure a less painful transition, they went along with the governor’s “my way or the highway” stance.
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Lawmakers passed the budget bill before Oct. 1 because it was the right thing to do — for their political careers. No one among them, however, double-checked the administration’s figures and projections. They accepted them wholesale and tweaked here and there to look good to their constituents.
But as the administration earlier pointed out, a budget is an estimate. And considering the downward trajectory of the economy, $102 million is more of a hope than a projection. Expect an announcement later on from the administration regarding the imposition of cuts.
There is no easy way out and no quick-fix solution to the CNMI’s financial crisis, and only a fool or a liar would say there is.
According to one of our online commentators, “It will be interesting to see what [those who] do not want the minimum wage raised have to say after this govt goes broke and many are looking for jobs in the private sector.”
This may be hard to believe if you’re not on island, but the CNMI government is practically broke and it is still hiring political supporters. The government’s primary duty remains payroll. No surprise there because its primary constituents are its employees. Public services are now basically an afterthought. Because the law of inertia also applies to politics, expect CNMI politicians to continue doing what they’ve been doing until they absolutely can’t anymore.
Meanwhile, some locals who do not have the right connections on Capital Hill are leaving the islands. (A local lady I know got a job as a waitress at a restaurant and quit three days later because the manager wanted her to mop the floor. She refused not because she didn’t want to mop the floor, but because her friends might see her and tease her about it. She’s now in Hawaii with her sister.)
An additional 50-cent wage increase is not enough to persuade them to perform manual labor in the private sector, which also requires you to show up on time for work every work day. Next year’s wage hike will result in another round of layoffs and work-hour cuts. But don’t believe me. Ask any CNMI private sector employee you know.
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