Four of the five members of the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. board were dismayed yesterday over what they described as the continued failure of corporation CEO Esther Mu\u00f1a to work with them.<\/p>\n
CHCC board chair Joaquin Torres, vice chair Pete Dela Cruz, and trustees Philip Mendiola-Long and Roy Rios criticized the absence of Mu\u00f1a, acting CFO Cora Ada, and director for Medical Affairs Dr. Sherleen Osman from yesterday\u2019s board meeting. The three were marked as \u201cabsent.\u201d<\/p>\n
The agenda for yesterday\u2019s meeting included a host of items, mostly reports due from management. Among these are the updates on finances, line of credit, unpaid obligations to vendors, and hiring updates.<\/p>\n
But to the disappointment of the four board members, Mu\u00f1a opted not to participate in the meeting and requests for her to send representatives were ignored.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of these reports have been requested for over several months and I am quite disappointed with the continuing failure to produce these reports, which are important information in order for the board to provide proper advice,\u201d said Torres.<\/p>\n
Vice chair Dela Cruz said that by the looks of it, there\u2019s no sense of urgency on the part of management to resolve issues at the hospital.<\/p>\n
Mendiola-Long said the issue of both the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. and Marianas Public Land Trust are on the \u201cverge of collapse\u201d and warrant immediate action. Without the necessary information from the CEO, there\u2019s nothing the board can do to help find a proper solution, he added. <\/p>\n
CUC earlier threatened to disconnect power from the hospital\u2019s non-essential services if it fails to pay in full its monthly billing by June 30.<\/p>\n
On the MPLT issue, it was disclosed yesterday that the corporation can\u2019t drawdown from its $4 million line of credit with MPLT until it hires a CFO.<\/p>\n
Without pertinent information, Mendiola-Long said \u201cit is almost impossible for us to have strategic planning, much less a budget, if we can\u2019t even create the foundation. We need to make sure the foundation is strong and in order for us to do that, it\u2019s either the CEO coming to us with solution [or] have [the board] offer those solutions for her because that\u2019s our role as an advisory board.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mendiola-Long said each trustee was appointed because of their management skills that could help the health agency manage its operations. But without the cooperation of the CEO, there continues to be a disconnect in the organization.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy point is, it\u2019s glaringly quiet. We see issues on CUC, MPLT, personnel, lawsuits, labor issues\u2026but nothing is being communicated to us in a forward-moving motion,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Mendiola-Long further expressed frustration over management\u2019s inaction on one issue that, for so long, should have already been addressed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been on the board for three months and we haven\u2019t hired a CFO? It doesn\u2019t make sense to me and I am just blown away by that. On top of that, CUC has come in and given us an ultimatum and we haven\u2019t been called to a meeting to see how we can help,\u201d he said, adding that he gets to know about specific issues only through the media.<\/p>\n
The board, he said, needs someone to help through the \u201cprocess.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe process is the critical component here. However, even if we go through the process, if the CEO just determines whether she wants to invoke it or not\u2026what\u2019s the use of the process? I am really confused on what our role is and what we\u2019re supposed to do here. I feel like it\u2019s just saying, \u2018Shut up until you are asked for your opinion here,\u2019\u201d added Mendiola-Long on the role of the advisory board.<\/p>\n
He admitted that he had plans of resigning as a trustee.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just got off the phone with the AG and I basically said I am not comfortable here anymore. I am to the point of resigning\u2026that\u2019s how bad this is here. I was being asked to hold a fiduciary role yet I am serving with members that say they have no decision-making authority in the process. The only reason I continue to stay on is because I see how bad it is and I know I can contribute something,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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