For members of the public, it is a bother to show up at such events which are usually long and boring. Speaking out in public, moreover, might even jeopardize your government job or contract. At any rate, if they’re really concerned about an issue, residents can call or visit their lawmakers.
And they can always fill out the ballot on election day.
But some lawmakers want public hearings to disclose where the people, or most of them, stand on a controversial issue. Lawmakers, in short, want to be “told” by voters what to say and how to say it. Ridiculous. A lawmaker does not get over $100,000 a year in salary and discretionary funds to be a puppet of his constituents. If that’s the case, then the CNMI should cut out the “middleman,” refer all policy decisions to voters and watch how mob rule results in chaos. No. Lawmakers are supposed to have their own opinions based on their careful studies and independent judgment. Public hearings, moreover, can never be accurate indicators of the public mood, however well-attended. Hearings allow stakeholders to be heard and lawmakers to hear the many sides of an issue. That is all.
I don’t agree with lawmakers who claim that a Saipan casino will end the government’s austerity measures, create good paying private sector jobs for locals, save the Retirement Fund, boost tourism, fund scholarships, medical referrals and the manamko’s airfare to Guam. I mean, come on! But the proponents, as usual, are overselling their snakeoil. Like the veteran politicians that they are, they insist that 1+1 = $500 million. Still, they have an opinion, however delusional, and are not hiding behind the coattails of the public.
The rest of the lawmakers, to be sure, have their own opinion but are afraid to reveal it. They prefer to pass the buck to voters. Besides, these lawmakers can say that passing a local bill is a risky gamble. The high court can declare it unconstitutional or voters themselves, just like in 1979, can repeal it. The gutless lawmakers can point this out to the casino proponents to justify doing it through an initiative, which has to be ratified by two-thirds of the voters. Quite a tall order. To ensure its passage, expect your government to inflict more pain as it tries to persuade you — through more paycuts, payless paydays, power outages, perhaps even layoffs — that a Saipan casino is the only way to end your suffering.
Don’t expect the Senate to block the Saipan casino bandwagon on the Hill. Regardless of what they say in public, the senators do not oppose the measure. But like the fraidy-cat House members, they want the deed done without them. The Rota and Tinian senators don’t want to disappoint their 1) islands’ casino owners who are also campaign donors, and 2) constituents who work for the gaming commissions. These senators have to appear that they oppose the Saipan casino bill, but they are also aware that as the government runs out of money, it is bad politics to displease the official who controls the release of whatever funds are left — the pro-casino governor.
Rejecting the proposal once placed on the ballot will not put an end to it. As I’ve said, the proponents will just try harder to make you see the “light” by imposing more austerity measures until you fold — like Rota voters who had also repeatedly rejected casino in the past.
The only way to “stop” it is to allow it. Instead of waiting for their lawmakers to grow a pair, concerned citizens should draft their own Saipan casino initiative with provisions, for example, barring all incumbent CNMI officials from serving on the commission for at least, say, 10 years. Require that casino revenue automatically goes to the Retirement Fund, medical referrals, scholarships, PSS and NMC, in that order. If there are leftover funds then the commissioners will share them, but each should not get more than $50,000 a year. In other words, commissioners will not receive any compensation — except for the usual per diems provided to government board members — until the casino is raking in the oodles of cash promised by its proponents. Moreover, require that all poker machines should relocate to the casino; no ifs, no buts. And don’t forget to include a rule that bars locals and nonresident workers from entering the casino unless they pay a fee (which will fund the per diems of the commissioners and their office expenses).
Now if the proponents believe what they say about the Saipan casino — that it will be a major industry and is for tourists only — then surely they, too, will support such an initiative.
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