NEARLY five months into their term, the four members of the Rota Legislative Delegation have yet to agree on a set date for an informal meeting and the selection of a pro tempore presiding officer.
Prior to any organizational session, a chair pro tempore must be chosen to officially call the delegation to order and conduct the session, which will then elect the delegation chair and other delegation officers as well as adopt the official rules of the delegation.
The delegation consists of Rep. Donald M. Manglona, Sens. Victor B. Hocog, Teresita A. Santos, and Paul A. Manglona.
The Manglonas are aligned with the Democrats while Hocog is a Republican and Santos is an Independent who usually votes with the GOP.
In a letter to the delegation on Monday, Santos said the delegation first attempted to organize itself on Feb. 17 of this year.
At the meeting, she said, Senator Manglona informed the members that he had no interest in the leadership position and urged the three remaining members to decide among themselves who the officers would be.
The floor was opened for nomination, and Hocog nominated Santos to lead the delegation.
Santos said that it was not until her nomination that Senator Manglona stated that he and Representative Manglona were also interested in the position.
“Since the delegation was unable to reach a consensus as to who would hold which leadership position, I requested that the informal meeting be adjourned to allow the members more time to contemplate the matter and meet again to discuss the matter the following week,” she said.
She added that she had offered a compromise for the sole purpose of organizing the delegation so that they could begin immediately working on local legislation.
Under the proposed compromise, Rep. Manglona would serve as chair for a year.
“I wholeheartedly believe that it is far more conducive to have set the terms of discourse in advance, so that everyone knows and agrees to the way they will consider matters. We cannot move forward without a consensus, which puts us in a precarious predicament, but I have taken a positive step forward and yearn for the best,” Santos said.
She said she has made several inquiries to Rep. Manglona on the status of her proposal. She said she strongly recommended that counterproposals should be offered and discussed when all four delegation members are present.
“I understand that we all have busy schedules and scheduled meetings and hearings. However, a concerted effort is necessary to ensure everyone’s presence to reach an amicable agreement to organize the delegation. It is extremely important that we begin work on numerous local appropriations, bills, and resolutions that have been referred to the delegation for action,” she said.
To her surprise, she added, an organizational session was scheduled by Sen. Manglona and Rep. Manglona for Friday, May 6 without verification and coordination with the other members and without a designated chair pro tempore to officially call and conduct an organization session.
Santos has asked that all four members attend an informal meeting on Monday, May 3 at 10 a.m. in the Senate chamber to decide on a chair pro tempore.
“The presence and participation of all members of this delegation is vital and respectfully requested,” she said.
Asked for comment, Sen. Manglona said the memorandum his office sent out on Friday, April 23 to the delegation members was simply a proposal, as he, too, recognizes the urgency of the delegation being organized.
He said he recommended that the meeting be held on Friday, May 6 on Rota in the mayor’s conference room, since the delegation members will already be on Rota for budget hearings.
He said he is unsure why Sen. Santos would propose to meet on Monday, May 3, given that she stated in her letter that she was aware that Rep. Manglona would be with his colleagues and the Legislative Bureau staff on Rota and Tinian that week to conduct budget hearings and town hall meetings.
Rep. Manglona, for his part, said that he had spoken to both Sen. Manglona and Sen. Santos regarding his availability in the coming weeks.
“On Rota, we have the budget hearings and two public hearings scheduled by the Health & Wellness and Natural Resources committees and then Tinian the week after. The [memorandum] that came out last week [from Sen. Manglona] proposes the organizational session around that time I will be on Rota, which coincides with the hearings, and that is why I signed off on [that] earlier-dated [memorandum],” he said.
He noted that should the delegation schedule a meeting on Saipan, he would not be available until after Tuesday, May 11.
However, should the delegation proceed with the session scheduled on Rota for Friday, May 6, then he would be available to attend.
Donald M. Manglona
Paul A. Manglona
Teresita A. Santos
Victor B. Hocog
