RESPONDING to claims of vote buying and using government resources to boost their campaign, Republican Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and his running mate Senate Floor Leader Vinnie F. Sablan said they follow guidelines when providing available resources to community members.
“Look back to the history of when I became the governor,” Torres said in a media conference Thursday. “Seven years. How many distributions have I had? How many distributions of the Office of Grants Management have been made? When you do something good for the communities, is that vote buying? Because we have the resources now, is that vote buying? When I gave the stimulus to the people of the Commonwealth, is that vote buying? When I gave the stimulus again, the bonuses to the retirees, is that vote buying? When I [provided the Commonwealth Utilities Corporation’s] $300 [stimulus] every month is that vote buying? If that’s vote buying, I think that I would like to give more to the people. [But] I never came back and said, ‘Please vote for me.’”
He said resources are available to everyone who qualifies regardless of political affiliations.
“I would do it again. This is for the people. Why is it so wrong? And I hope that those who are complaining, I hope that they can do something for the community, and I promise you that I will not say [that it is] vote buying or whatever the language is. I hope they can do more, and I wish that I can do more, but this is the time that we have [these resources]. There’s a timeframe, and we will continue to do what we can to help the community. Again, all of these resources that are [being given] out to the community have guidelines for everyone [to follow],” he said.
Republican Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and his running mate Sen. Floor Leader Vinnie F. Sablan hold a press conference at the GOP headquarters in Garapan late Thursday afternoon.
