A 71-year-old senior citizen whose Fender acoustic guitar was among the items stolen by thieves who burglarized the manamko’ center is urging the perpetrators to “change their lives.”
Vicente “Ben” Sablan Basa gestures during an interview with Variety on Wednesday.
Vicente “Ben” Sablan Basa in an interview on Wednesday said one of the perpetrators, through another person, confessed and asked for his forgiveness.
But Basa was also told that the thieves could no longer return his guitar because it was already sold. The guitar was a gift from Basa’s daughter who now resides in Washington state.
Basa declined to name the thieves saying he has already forgiven them. The thieves, he said, are hooked on illegal drugs.
Basa said all he could do now is to send a message not only to those who stole his guitar but also to the other people who have lost their way.
“I just want to tell them, whoever they are, to please change their lives because what they are doing now, they’re not going anywhere,” Basa said.
Recently, he said a young mother he knows left her small children at home to play video poker at 4 a.m.
Basa said it’s also a familiar scene in his village to see young couples getting hooked on illegal drugs. Like those who stole his guitar, they end up stealing to buy drugs or play poker.
“What I see every day bothers me because I care,” said Basa who lives in Chalan Kanoa.
“I may sound like I am scolding, but I’m just concerned because what they are doing is wrong,” he added.
Basa said all his five children are living successful lives in the U.S. His two other daughters are in Texas while his two sons reside in Oregon.
Basa said he is concerned about the young people on island “because I love my people especially the new generation.”
He added, “They must change their lives while they are still young because when they grow old, they won’t have any retirement money, and Medicaid assistance is not forever.”
To those in jail right now, he said, “please think about this: once you’re out, find a job and start changing you lives.”
Basa said he thinks politicians know what’s going on in the community, “but they just don’t care.”
