So many want to serve the CNMI, but can’t they do so without running for office? Can’t they give back to the community without costing taxpayer money? Community advocates have shown that anyone can make a big difference without getting into politics. Indeed, you don’t need to be a politician to work for the CNMI’s welfare.
But perhaps there is really nothing else to do in this sinking economy and even a government job is not enough — one must be an elected official.
Voters, for their part, must still ask these candidates if they are running for personal gain or public service, and the candidates must explain themselves to the people.
To begin with, are these elected positions all that attractive? The salaries aren’t that appealing so it must mean that the allure is elsewhere. Clearly, the desirability of an elected office is in its ability to direct the development of the commonwealth, grow or shrink the size of government, direct contracts, employ or withhold employment from individuals, or — judging by the performance of some past leaders — drive with your eyes closed. Even legislators have some indirect if not direct influence over these kinds of activities. Moreover, the mere mention of one’s office opens doors and offers of help not available to the voting public.
This is the value of these positions. And this is why voters must be concerned with how public officials conduct themselves. Their actions must benefit the general public, and not their business, personal or political interest exclusively.
Voters have a critical role in how their government functions or whether their government functions at all. Voters decide who runs the government and, therefore, how it will run. Making decisions based solely on who is a fresh face and who has been around the block is not recommended. At the same time, voting for the same folks while hoping that things will get better when there is absolutely no indication anything different will materialize is also not wise.
When people squander their votes, they lose their complaining rights.
In any case, there are already “fresh faces” on Capital Hill today. Generally, they haven’t amounted to much beyond providing fresh faces. But whenever the electorate is tired, it will again vote the “old” out and bring “fresher” ones in.
For this upcoming election, however, voters must make a careful study of the candidates, what they’ve done or propose to do. There is hardly a “new” idea out there that hasn’t been introduced somewhere else so the measuring rod is not only which candidate has “new ideas” but who will actually do what they promise to do, and how will they do it.
Candidates, for example, have long promised to privatize power generation but it has gotten stymied because the procurement is compromised by wrongheaded attempts to channel the utility to certain “friends.” As a result, the CNMI has struggled with unreliable power for close to two decades and poured in over $100 million into propping up a dilapidated system.
This November, voters must take the time to evaluate issues that are important to the advancement of the commonwealth and decide which candidate will solve the CNMI’s problems in the right way and for the right reasons.
