Define ‘dysfunction’
THE rift between the two Democrats in the Senate had been quietly simmering for quite a while, and is now out in the open. As usual, one’s opinion about it will depend on one’s political inclinations. The Senate, in any case, is still functioning — not in the way some believe it should, but it is operational nonetheless. The disagreement has been resolved already by arithmetic, as usual. Right now, the Senate president, who is leaving the Democratic Party at the end of her term, has the numbers. This November, she will then face the electorate, the ultimate judge in these matters.
Meanwhile, life, well, crawls on. The economy is still sputtering. The government is still broke.
As for “dysfunction” — it’s a word usually (and incorrectly) applied to how politics and/or government works in a democracy. But not all politicians will agree with each other all the time — not even if they belong to the same party. Moreover, the CNMI’s system of government, which is modeled after America’s, is premised on disagreements, and checks and balances. This type of government is not supposed to run “smoothly” in which everyone gets together, agrees on a plan of action, implements it while holding hands and singing “We are the World.” That only happens, if it happens at all (especially the singing part), during grave national crises such as wars. And such “unity of action” is temporary, as it should be. This government, in any case, is supposed to be deliberative. It is designed to engage in careful consideration and thoughtful decision-making processes. Hence, the three separate but co-equal branches of government. Hence, a bicameral legislature whose role is to ensure thorough discussions, weighing of options, consideration of diverse viewpoints, and the evaluation of potential consequences before passing legislation.
Right now, it is the House that could be considered “dysfunctional.” It has passed several bills without public hearings (due diligence? what’s that?). It has also rubber-stamped many of the administration’s controversial (i.e., tax/fee hike) proposals.
Happily for the general public, the Senate is doing its job.
Only?
THE Senate president has noted that there are 30 Senate bills and 28 House bills pending in the Senate JGL committee. Now that the panel has been reorganized, a House member said that “it would be interesting to see how quickly they move.”
Wait. Only 58 bills are gathering dust in the committee? We wish more bills would remain stuck in that and other committees.
What’s the rush anyway? Why the need to “move quickly”? Apparently, some lawmakers still believe that legislation is a magic wand that can make their constituents’ wishes come true. (See the anti-littering law — or the blighted property law.)
The CNMI government’s most pressing problem is its lack of funding. The government could easily solve this difficulty by significantly reducing its costs. A household or a business entity with not enough money would cut back in a heartbeat. But not the government whose officials are elected by voters, many of whom are also government employees and retirees, and are related to other voters.
Which of the pending bills would address that dilemma? Which could immediately bring in additional revenue to the government, boost tourism arrivals and/or revive the economy?
Those are the measures — if there are such measures — that are truly and badly needed by the CNMI right now.
As for most, if not almost all, of the pending bills in both houses, they are a terrible waste of the paper they were written on.
Which reminds us. The Legislature — and the rest of the government — should go paperless. Imagine the savings.
