Rep. Tina Sablan, Ind.-Saipan, said the Legislature’s presiding officers wrote a letter to the governor, requesting a meeting to begin planning such a summit.
“I am not sure if the governor has responded to their letter at all. If he has, I haven’t seen it,” she said in an interview yesterday.
Asked for comment, Press Secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr. said, “I believe Michael Ada, the secretary of commerce, is handling the matter. I will ask him.”
According to Sablan, she has talked with business owners and managers.
“[They’re] considering hosting such a summit themselves, putting together their own plan for economic development, defining the role that government should play in that plan, and then throwing their support behind political candidates who would commit to adopting that plan. I think the idea makes perfect sense. If the government will not act on an economic summit, businesses can take the lead, and would probably do it better.”
Sablan believes that “economic development is rarely, if ever, led by government. I think government can certainly play an important role in facilitating development — i.e., providing infrastructure, technical assistance, incentives, regulatory oversight, and, at the bare minimum, doing no harm. But when it comes to planning for economic revitalization, diversification, and innovation, government frankly doesn’t hold a candle to entrepreneurs.”
