What the people of the CNMI should do now is reflect on the causes of our dismal economic condition. Everyone in the CNMI must put their head together and propose constructive measures that would hopefully get us out of our economic recession.
The loud rhetoric of blaming each other, the accusations and finger-pointing that we have been reading in the paper for a long time has got to stop. Blaming one another is unhealthy and unproductive. It is like treading water; we are not moving forward. We have to cooperate with each other if we are to make any progress in our effort to turn around our poor economy. In stressful times such as the one we are going through, we have to join hands and come up with practical and realistic solutions. We must be willing to undertake new and bold, even daring, measures if our economy is to begin moving again. And we must realize that we have no time to waste, because the situation is becoming an economic depression, even as we talk.
One of the most important matters that we must tackle immediately is the urgent need to revive our visitor industry, which is now our only industry. The CNMI visitor industry has been weathering our economic recession for some time now. There has been a dramatic decline in the number of visitors to the islands. The demise of the CNMI visitor industry, in turn, is caused by the increasing reduction in the number of airline seats to the CNMI, ever since the new century began ten years ago. If the number of visitors continues to fall, the CNMI visitor industry might no longer be an industry. We, therefore, have to address what should be done to make the CNMI attractive once more as a tourist destination. What should we do to entice more air carriers to provide direct air service to Saipan? This question has to be addressed and answered if the CNMI visitor industry is to get back on track.
A second matter that we have to look into if we are going to revive the CNMI economy is what steps should be taken to attract new investors to invest in the CNMI. The CNMI needs “new money” to jumpstart our dying economy. One of the things that would entice new investors to invest in the CNMI is the need to cultivate an investor-friendly environment. Our laws and regulations must be investor-friendly. They must also be fair and above-board to all investors, and not just to some.
A major enticement that would make investors sit up and take notice would be the repeal of Article 12. But if the repeal of Article 12 is still unacceptable to the majority of CNMI citizens, then amending it to allow all U.S. citizens to own land in the CNMI and to provide, say, a 99-year maximum leasehold to foreign investors would probably make a huge impact on the CNMI economy. Either way, we have to reconsider the adverse effect that Article 12 has had on the CNMI economy. It is like an albatross on the neck of the CNMI. It is choking our economy.
A third matter that we have to tackle is the need for CNMI leaders to take the lead in the introduction of one or two other sustainable industries for the CNMI. The garment industry, which is no longer here, was labor intensive; and that fact made it unsuitable for the CNMI because of our small population. But an industry, like some of the tech-related industries making microchips and other high-tech parts, could employ several hundred local residents, once they are properly trained. If we are to pursue this type of industry, however, we would have to start discussing its feasibility with some of the high-tech companies in the U.S. mainland and the Far East that might be interested in setting up shop in the CNMI. We should mention to these companies that the CNMI provides very attractive tax rebates for all businesses here, plus qualifying tax incentives for new businesses.
I will stop my letter here because it is really our political and business leaders who should “carry the ball” in this matter. That is the reason why we elected them as our leaders, namely, to lead and to lead positively. We have had several economic summits during the past two years, but without any success. The reason for this failure is because there has been no follow-up. And the reason why there has been no follow-up is because no one was made responsible to oversee and undertake the necessary action to implement what was recommended at these economic summits.
It seems to me that our political and business leaders must jointly take this responsibility. I would propose the establishment of an “economic revival task force,” made up of fresh new and young blood, whose sole purpose is to comprehensively review the underlying causes of our economic downturn and to propose realistic recommendations that the CNMI business and political leaders must take to revive our economy. Such economic revival task force should be charged with the drafting of accompanying legislation that would implement and put in motion the recommendations of the task force. Is this so difficult for us to do? Could we expect our political and business leaders to consider the suggestions and proposals made in this letter? Could we expect a feedback from them, say, within the next several weeks? We clearly have to start somewhere. Enfin serafin!
ALEXANDRO “The Colonel” SABLAN
Dandan, Saipan
