Letting the government pay for its mistakes

This is in response to the Saipan Tribune article that came out on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2009. On page 3, titled “Court over-stepping its authority over funds,” you will read Public Lands Secretary John S. DelRosario Jr.’s assessment on Presiding Judge Robert Naraja’s court order to Department of Public Lands to pay the heirs of Rita Rogolifoi over $1.8 million in compensation over the government’s taking of two lands in As Mahetog in 1976 and 1992.

According to the article, Mr. Del Rosario is questioning the court’s authority to demand payments from DPL to compensate the injured party, in this case, the heirs of Rita Rogolifoi. He is bothered that the court has taken away the Legislature’s authority to appropriate funds for land compensation. He even sympathizes with the Legislature for its failure to appropriate funds for land claims due to the dismal local and global economy.

Furthermore, he wanted everyone to know that the segregated funds of DPL is constitutionally protected, which made me wonder just how far he would go to twist everything around to make him look like the victim in this case.

I have this to say to Mr. Del Rosario: “Prim, you inherited this mess which began during the Marianas Public Land Corporation, long before MPLA and now DPL came along. This has been a very frustrating and strenuous fight for land ownership rights by the heirs of Rita Rogolifoi and you weren’t even aware of it until you came on board with DPL. Now that we have come to some resolution, you want to play hardball with us. You don’t even want me to step in your office to sit down and discuss possible settlement to our court case.”

Mr. Del Rosario’s insistence that the Legislature is the right place to appropriate funds for land claims is completely politics in nature. He wants to turn this debacle into a political gamesmanship.

DPL or the government made the mistake of taking private land for public roads and leasing portion of the land to businesses to earn revenue for its operations. Now that the injured party has won in court, Mr. Del Rosario insists that DPL should not be responsible for paying for its mistakes. This is a callous and insulting remark by an arrogant public official who thinks he is smarter than anyone else on this planet.

Why can’t DPL pay for its mistake? Is DPL really constitutionally protected to cover its mistakes and from making amends to its victims? The court order by our Honorable Judge Robert Naraja is just and fair for the injured victims, the heirs of Rita Rogolifoi, and I see no intrusion on the separate powers of the other two branches of government.

Mr. Del Rosario’s rationale is leading to more court battle, perhaps to the Appeal Courts, which makes me wonder why he is doing this to our family.

Whatever his motives are, I am more than ready to block the road I have been planning to do ever since Mr. Del Rosario and his lawyers are putting up a fight over our alienable land rights to our private family property in As Mahetog. If he wants to continue this fight, then I am ready to take it to the “street.”