New OPA intern program complies with existing law
The realigned internship program of the Office of the Public Auditor is not only a boon to college students who want to become apprentices and interns who want to return to college, it also complies with a five-year old CNMI law that mandates the training of local interns for employment.
This was revealed yesterday by recently appointed Public Auditor Mike Sablan.
“We are very optimistic about this new program,” Mr. Sablan said. “Not only are we opening up professional career opportunities, but we are also ensuring that the Office of the Public Auditor itself is in compliance with commonwealth law.
Public 10-4, enacted in 1996, states the objective of the Intern Program is to “ensure that individuals accepted into the Intern Program receive the necessary job skills, training an/or education to eventually fill positions currently occupied by non-resident workers.”
Previous efforts by OPA to fulfill the requirements of the aforementioned law were met with limited success. With the modified internship program, Sablan hopes to succeed were past initiatives failed.
The proposed audit internship program, scheduled to be implemented in April this year, will provide individuals with two different ladders for entry into the program — either as a part-time intern or a full-time one.
This facet of the new program would appeal to students as well as interns who want to finish their schooling.
The proposed OPA intern initiative would also embrace students majoring, or planning to major, in finance, economics, business administration, business management or criminal justice. In contrast, erthswhile programs only accepted applicants taking up, or who plan to take up, accounting.
Moreover, the proposed program will adjust the public auditor’s salary and other compensation benefits so it would be comparable to what other public employees are getting.
The new OPA intern program will be implemented with the help of the Northern Marianas College, University of Guam and other learning institutions as well as a number private firms.
