IN their final session as the 22nd Senate, three outgoing senators thanked their supporters and wished the incoming senators the best.
The terms of Senate Floor Leader Vinnie F. Sablan, Sens. Victor B. Hocog and Teresita A. Santos will end on Monday, Jan. 9.
Hocog, a Rota Republican, did not seek re-election. Santos unsuccessfully ran as an Independent candidate for Rota mayor while Sablan, who represents Saipan in the Senate, was the running mate of Republican Gov. Ralph DLG Torres who lost to the Independent tandem of Lt. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios and Saipan Mayor David M. Apatang.
“I’d just like to take this time to give my greatest appreciation to everybody,” Sablan said on Tuesday. “I’d like to give my greatest honor and appreciation for all of you that have given me the chance to serve as your congressman and as your senator in these past legislatures,” Sablan added.
To his fellow senators, he said, “It’s been an honor to serve with all of you. It’s been an honor to make these critical decisions for the people of our Commonwealth, to protect our lands and to improve the quality of lives of our people. I take none of that for granted, and it’s been truly an honor to sit in the front row to be a part of this body, to make those decisions… It’s truly been a great experience as a senator.
“To the incoming and returning members of the Legislature and of the Senate, I’d like to say congratulations on your election. I have true faith in your commitment and leadership to our people and to our lands. To the outgoing members of the House, I wish you luck in your future endeavors, and [I] hope to cross paths [with you] again,” he said.
“There’s a lot of fresh air for me now. It’s time to really just concentrate on the other important things in life. Like I said in our delegation session today, it’s important to take these positions, it’s important to take these leaps of faith, to run for public office and to make great decisions for our people, but at this point in my journey, it’s now time for me to really concentrate on the importance of my home front: my family…and making sure that the home front stays healthy, because if the home is healthy and the family is happy, I believe everyone can come back and lead in different capacities.”
Indebted
Senator Santos said the CNMI is indebted to the Biden administration for close to $500 million in aid that saved the Commonwealth amid the Covid-19 public health emergency.
“The last couple of years have been a very difficult and challenging journey. We were faced with an unprecedented pandemic that crippled our economy and our way of life, but collectively, we remain composed and focused on our mandate to our people. Without financial assistance from the federal government, the CNMI would have suffered substantially worse,” she said.
“These funds helped many of our people retain their jobs, find new employment, put food on their tables, keep their lights on, receive stimulus payments, and so on,” she said.
Santos also applauded lawmakers for working together on the past two consecutive fiscal year budgets that “prevented government shutdowns and continued critical services for the people.”
However, Santos said the Legislature was “overshadowed” by the impeachment of Governor Torres and, more recently, the “improprieties of the BOOST Program.” BOOST stands for Building Optimism, Opportunities, and Stability Together.
“Uncertainty regarding how much [American Rescue Plan Act] funds remain puts many of our people wondering if they will continue to have meaningful employment in the very near future,” she added. “The expenditure of ARPA funds remains under enhanced scrutiny. The next Legislature has a lot of work and challenges ahead of them. May the new leadership bring renewed hope to accountability, transparency, and trust. Our people deserve nothing less,” she said.
Santos said she is “deeply humbled and extremely grateful to our people of Rota for their trust and confidence in my ability to represent them during the 22nd CNMI Legislature. I trust that our Almighty God has led us to where we are today and will continue to lead us from here on forward.”
The incoming new senators are Celina R. Babauta, D-Saipan; Corina L. Magofna, Ind.-Saipan; Donald M. Manglona, Ind.-Rota; and Dennis Mendiola, R-Rota.
The other members are incumbent Sens. Francisco Q. Cruz, R-Tinian; Edith Deleon Guerrero, D-Saipan; Jude U. Hofschneider, R-Tinian; Paul A. Manglona, Ind.-Rota; and Karl R. King-Nabors, R-Tinian.
The 22nd Senate holds its final session on Tuesday before adjourning sine die.
