He wants Ihlen Joseph to serve on the U.S.-FSM Compact of Free Association’s Joint Economic Management Committee.
Under Public Law 15-70, the president is required to select two FSM representatives to sit on JEMCO.
The law gives the president the ability to select one representative from a position within the FSM national government and requires that the other representative must be selected from a list of four nominees, one per state.
Lorin Robert, secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs, was already confirmed as the representative from the FSM national government.
At that time, Mori was awaiting the recommended names from the governors.
When the names were finally received, Kosrae nominated Semeon Phillip, floor leader of the state legislature; Chuuk nominated Jack Fritz; and two governors nominated themselves: Pohnpei’s John Ehsa and Yap’s Sebastian Anefal.
This created a problem for Mori as it was difficult to pick one governor over another.
This impasse went on until Ehsa recently decided to withdraw his name in favor of Joseph whom he recommended to the president.
Joseph has an extensive employment history within the national and state governments.
He served as chief of the Division of Administrative Services in the Office of Budget for the FSM national government (1981-1983), as Compact public information coordinator in Washington, D.C. (1983-1984), as administrator of the Office of Planning, Budget and Statistics of Pohnpei (1983-85), as acting director of the Department of Treasury for Pohnpei State (1985-86), as director of the Department of Treasury of Pohnpei (1986-87), as assistant secretary of finance for the FSM national government (1988-1998) and as assistant secretary for budget of the FSM national government (1998-2006).
He currently serves as the chief of staff/special assistant to the governor of Pohnpei.
Moreover, Joseph is the director and chairman of the board of the Bank of the FSM (1993-present) and is director and chairman of the board of the FSM Development Bank (1988-present).
He holds the high traditional title of Iso Nahnken of U and is a Wahnparon, or minister, of the United Church of Christ in Pohnpei.
