A PETITION opposing the nomination of Bruce L. Jorgensen to the Commonwealth Ports Authority board of directors is circulating on Rota.
The petition, which questions Jorgensen’s residency and community participation, is addressed to the chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Executive Appointments and Government Investigations, Sen. Celina R. Babauta, and the Rota Legislative Delegation chairman, Senate Vice President Donald M. Manglona.
Eight individuals have signed the petition, but according to one of them, there are other individuals who also oppose Jorgensen’s nomination.
Babauta told reporters on Monday that she had yet to receive a copy of the petition.
The petitioners said, “Appointing an outsider not only feels demeaning but also disregards the importance of keeping the workforce local.”
They urged Babauta to investigate Jorgensen’s claim of residency, because “it appears that his appointment may be driven by ulterior motives, and we are concerned that he is falsely representing Rota without genuine connection to our community.”
According to the petitioners, Jorgensen’s nomination is “invalid and an insult to the people of Rota.”
The petitioners said Jorgensen is not an active member of the Rota community and has not demonstrated any significant involvement since the late Mayor Prudencio T. Manglona’s tenure in the 1980s when Jorgensen served as the mayor’s legal adviser.
They said Jorgensen’s appointment “may be influenced by the political differences between the previous and current administrations.”
Earlier this month, Gov. Arnold I. Palacios nominated Jorgensen to serve the remaining term of Barrie C. Toves who represented Rota on the board. The governor also nominated Antonio B. Cabrera to fill the seat vacated by former CPA Board Vice Chairman Roman Tudela who resigned in January.
The current CPA board members are Chairwoman Kimberlyn King-Hinds, Joseph Diaz, Pete P. Reyes, Sen. Thomas P. Villagomez and Ray Tebuteb. They are all appointees of then-Gov. Ralph DLG Torres. But Reyes and Villagomez supported Palacios in the 2022 gubernatorial election.
Jorgensen has a master’s degree in law from the University of Queensland as well as degrees in maritime/shipping/marine environmental law from T.C. Beirne School of Law and a juris doctorate from Union University/Albany Law School.
In May 2022, he returned to Rota where he now lives.
Support
An attorney, David L. Price, has sent Babauta a letter expressing support for Jorgensen’s nomination.
Price said he has known Jorgensen since his days clerking for District Court for the NMI Senior Judge Alex R. Munson “who spoke highly of Jorgensen.”
“I was aware that [Jorgensen] had previously worked for Mayor Prudencio T. Manglona as municipal legal counsel for Rota and practiced before the Federal District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands, but our paths never crossed until I and others such as former Attorney General Richard Weil, attorneys Tim Bruce, Mary Flanagan and Sapporo Rayphand as well as economist William Stewart decided to support a lawsuit Mr. Jorgensen brought on behalf of retirees who wanted to save the Northern Marianas Retirement Fund from bankruptcy,” Price said.
He said their services and in-kind contributions were pro bono. The case was filed in 2009 and became the basis for the establishment of the Settlement Fund, which is administered by a trustee under the supervision of the Federal District Court.
Price said with the support of past CNMI administrations and past CNMI Legislatures, retirees and other beneficiaries who chose to remain in the system have received full annuity benefits for the past 10 years.
“In my opinion, Mr. Jorgensen deserves much of the credit for initiating legal proceedings and advancing our interests for many years,” Price said.
He added that Jorgensen is an active member of the Hawaii Bar Association, and has maintained his good standing in the federal courts in the CNMI, on Guam and in Hawaii.
“All these jurisdictions have economies which are dependent on efficient and professionally managed airports and seaports for the delivery of basic goods and services and development of tourism,” Price said.
However, he said, airports and seaports are highly regulated under U.S. law, which is “very complex.”
He said the fact that Jorgensen has a master’s degree in Maritime Law, has experience in aviation matters, and is familiar with the delivery of goods and services at airports and seaports on Rota, Tinian and Saipan, makes him very well qualified to serve on the CPA board.
Jorgensen’s son, who is a Rota landholder and is planning to build a home there, also sent the Senate committee a letter supporting his father’s nomination.
He said he was writing as a former and future Rota resident, and a person with firsthand knowledge of, and decades of experience with, the nominee.
He said Jorgensen has been a CNMI community member during the past 38 years, a licensed attorney in good standing with JD (law) and LLM (masters maritime/shipping law) degrees, a public interest advocate and servant, and a person known by many as unfailingly generous with his time, resources, expertise, and goodwill.
“He is my father, Bruce L. Jorgensen, who returned to the CNMI last year, to retire on Rota in a home I am striving to provide him there while employed myself in Hawaii. At the outset, I feel compelled to explain that like many from Rota, I would love to be working and living there with my father today; and, I hope and intend to eventually do so, and to remain permanently at that time,” Jorgensen’s son said.
“Unfortunately, the exorbitant costs of commodities on Rota, and the consequential lack of financial resources or stability for young adults, like myself, makes it virtually impossible to remain on Rota without seeking Federal subsidies and support, and having to live a seemingly hand-to-mouth existence if not employed in some capacity by the CNMI or Municipal governments.
“This I swiftly learned several years ago, while living on Rota and employed by Francisco M. Atalig in his various grocery, farming, export and import enterprises which, of necessity, must pass on to Rota’s consumers the extortionate costs which must be incurred to ship and offload commodities and other goods either to Rota’s West Harbor seaport, or via air cargo to Rota’s airport.
“While reasonable alternatives have been and remain available to alleviate these exorbitant costs, it seems that many empowered with authority to establish, implement, and mandate those alternatives in prompt and comprehensive fashion, have been unable or unwilling to do so for reasons unknown by most.
“The viability of living on Rota is diminished for many as a consequence, if not for most young adults seeking to establish careers, or raise families. And the victims have been the [vibrancy], vitality, and general welfare of the Rota community, as a whole,” Jorgensen’s son said.
