Gamesmanship at DPS

The Department of Public Safety plays a key role in keeping peace and security throughout the Northern Marianas Community. Its very presence anywhere in our villages brings a sense of reassurance of peace and safety among villagers.

However an often maligned department because of expectations beyond what’s humanly possible, many of us equally acknowledge that our officers of the peace work the extra mile to keep peace and safety in our community.

But it is really very saddening to know that this organization of peace and security isn’t necessarily a unified group ready and willing to take the ball of responsibility and run along with the other team members. There seems to be a divided department where loyalty of officers are wedged between the commissioner–man in-charge–and another seasoned higher up who’s basically given Charles Ingram lukewarm support.

It appears that the vicious in-house politics of the department has been given greater though quiet prominence over the fiduciary responsibility of law enforcement. The commissioner gets slammed by politicians and bureaucrats from the hill when the other side of his organization crumbles. Some were even quick to insist that he resigns without the benefit of understanding the origin of recent escapes by prisoners.

The problem obviously revolves around the human equation aspect where aspirants for the top post resent having to follow a game plan descending from the commissioner that differs substantially from their view of the norms or procedures as they know it. Armed with the knowledge of the Achilles Heels of the department, they have subtly tripped Ingram’s efforts at efficient management with lukewarm or no cooperation at all.

The governor needs to quickly intercede and review a rather highly volatile situation. The time to move-in is now while time is in his hands. Some hard decisions are called for and such rests with his executive authority to iron-out a divided department we all rely for peace and security. For dissenting officers, we ask that you take the welfare of the community to heart before the politics of the department. After all, you too have taken an oath to ensure peace and stability throughout the Northern Mariana Islands. Si Yuus Maase`!