Panel sets NMC probe over funding

The House committee on Health, Education and Welfare will start an oversight investigation into the Northern Marianas College next week, focusing on operations, scholarships and financial management of CNMI’s lone higher learning institution, its chairman said yesterday.

The announcement was made after NMC students picketed the governor’s office to protest against insufficient funds for the college scholarship program, which may imperil their education this spring semester.

“We will get to the bottom why these policies of the college are different from what we tend to hear and read,” HEW chair Rep. Heinz Hofschneider told reporters.

“We will see how those scholarship money is being applied to the operations of the college,” he added.

According to the legislator, the committee will take into account the complaints of the on-island students such as alleged refusal by NMC officials to accept government scholars who have failed to pay their tuition within 30 days after enrollment.

“This is ridiculous. We need to get to the bottom of this,” Hofschneider said, urging NMC students to voice out their protests when the oversight is conducted next week.

The HEW chairman, meanwhile, said the committee is drawing up a legislation that will map out a comprehensive policy and consolidate all government scholarships and educational financial assistance programs.

The proposal will also seek the creation of a new government body tasked with implementation of policies as well as identification of parameters of students who will be eligible to receive financial aid from the commonwealth.

These functions, while not encompassing, are currently being handled by the CNMI Scholarship’s Office.

“There is a need for a better accountability and predictions in the successive years of students enrolling,” Hofschneider pointed out.

Under the proposed measure, a board will be set up to oversee the functions and promulgate policies. Hofschneider said the bill will also curtail and place a cap in the full scholarships granted by the CNMI government to both on-island and off-island students.

“We need to put a cap so that there is a greater distribution of resources to a lot more students,” the representative pointed out.