Diff’rent strokes for diff’rent folks

If you want to see any public document in CNMI government offices, be prepared for different experiences and treatment, ranging from the courteous to outright hostility and suspicion.

A recent survey conducted by the Saipan Tribune, called The Sunshine Project, highlighted the differing interpretations and procedures government agencies have in place when handling an OGA request.

Reporter Roselyn Monroyo recounts such a contrasting experience when asking for a copy of the Fiscal Year 2009 budget request of the Office of the Governor and the Northern Islands Mayor’s Office:

“On March 30, 2009, I made a verbal request for a copy of the Governor’s Office budget request for FY 2009 and I was asked to check on Charles Reyes.

“Charles asked me to go to Office of Legislative Review, and Rose Ada (no questions asked) provided me a copy of the FY 2009 budget (for all agencies) approved by the House. Since I was looking only for a copy of the budget request of the Governor’s Office, I was told to check on Esther Fleming.

“Fleming was busy with other stuff, so I waited for about 30 minutes to get the documents. While waiting, staff at the Governor’s Office took turns asking if I needed anything to drink or if I have other business besides the document I wanted to get.”

Monroyo got the document after less than an hour.

Her experience took a different turn with the Northern Islands Mayor’s Office: She made a verbal request on March 30, 2009. Since neither the Mayor nor the finance officer was there, she spoke with an adviser who told her to leave her contact details and he will have the finance officer call her.

“I waited for five days, but received no calls from the Northern Islands Mayor’s Office. On April 6, I called the office and talked to the finance officer. My conversation with her went this way”:

Finance officer: Why are you making a request for the FY 2009, which had already been passed?

Monroyo: It’s for a pie graph presentation of FY 2009. Can I get a copy from you?

FO: I don’t think so. Only the mayor can approve the release of such document.

RM: OK, so I should be calling or writing a letter to the mayor?

FO: Go and write, but I don’t think the mayor will approve it and release the document.

RM: It’s all right, I will still try my luck.

FO: You are going to try your luck, ha!

The next day, Monroyo submitted an OGA request, then followed up on April 21. She has yet to receive the document as of press time.

Although the surveyors were instructed to as much as possible refrain from identifying themselves, the test survey showed that response time to an OGA request depends whether you’re an ordinary member of the public or a media personnel.

At the CNMI Department of Labor, when Saipan Tribune assistant editor Mark Rabago asked if he could inspect the department’s budget request for the previous fiscal year, he was told that they normally don’t give out documents like that “because they’re confidential” and that he should forward his query to the Attorney General’s Office instead.

“I didn’t look that official or serious as I was wearing my customary shorts-and-T-shirt get-up as it was still early in the morning (9:30am). But after I showed my calling card and introduced myself as from the newspaper, the staff became more accommodating and accepted my OGA request and even stamped it ‘received.’”

In most instances, the release of a public document depends on the go-signal of the department head.

Reporter Nazario Rodriguez, when asking to see the current year’s budget for the Rota Mayor’s Office, was told by the chief of staff that he would consult with the Mayor first and ask his permission before releasing the document. The same response was obtained from the Division of Corrections, where the director’s secretary said that she will refer the request to the director first for his approval. Both have yet to respond to the request.

It took reporter Ferdie dela Torre a total of three days to get the requested document from the Department of Cultural Affairs because they had to wait for the Secretary to approve the release of the document.

“The staff members were accommodating during the my visits but one staff expressed concern whether their office is being singled out,” said dela Torre.

Verbal requests also do not seem to get any attention as much as a written OGA request. When reporter Haidee Eugenio asked the Public School System to see its budget for the current fiscal year, the Office of the Commissioner immediately asked her to put the request in writing. (As of April 22, PSS has yet to provide the document requested.)

At the Department of Public Works, Rabago made the initial verbal request on April 9 and he said he was given the run-around, from the Secretary’s Office, to administration, to accounting.

“Accounting manager Margaret Cruz eventually told me that they don’t normally release documents without getting a green light from their secretary, Diego Songsong. I went back to the Secretary’s Office and his staff said the secretary was out and they will just forward my verbal request to him. I left my calling card and a promise the secretary will give me a call. But there was no call more than a week later it dawned on me that I forgot to give them my OGA request. I drove immediately to the DPW office in Gualo Rai and submitted my OGA on April 21 and they have until April 30 to act on it.”