OVR

IT was no sooner that I began to grumble (in my head) over the recent roll-out of new candidates for the U.S. Delegate position and the nauseating nature of party politics than it was that I began to hear about this year’s mini-shake up in our local version of the Grand Old Party (GOP).  It seems like just yesterday too that some of the so-called stalwarts of CNMI’s Democratic Party jumped ship and joined forces with the last election’s Republicans.  One of the problems with party politics in general is that at the core it’s about erecting grandiose walls and make-believe borders between people of varying and, ideally, evolving beliefs.  Put another way, it’s a contrived method of dividing people at best and boxing them in at worst. We know or should know all too well the vitriol and divisive rhetoric that comes from party loyalists and their baffling devotion to their respective parties. The question  and I heard this asked about patriotism to our Nation —  is how can people claim to be patriots or in our case how can people claim to truly care about and want what’s best for our Commonwealth when they can’t stand half the people in it?

Personally, I appreciate mutinies against political parties, but that in and of itself does not tell us enough and while I applaud those who choose the road less travelled, they cannot lead if others won’t follow.  I think, in a nod to my friend and outgoing delegate, Congressman Kilili has done a masterful job in setting his course with our Commonwealth as his true north despite politics and more importantly in spite of himself. Thankfully others in leadership positions today are also transcending political party lines and putting service above self. In all seriousness, who gives a crap what political party you are, were or may have been?  I get that it’s a means or vehicle for garnering votes, but conduct once in office is all that really matters.  Political party lines may as well be drawn in the shoreline sand at low tide for all I care.

I’m tempted to share my personal views on our current candidates for U.S. Delegate here, but to be fair, I really don’t know any of them very well.  With the exception of a few direct business dealings and some mostly friendly exchanges of small-to-medium-size-talk with a couple of them, I only know them peripherally by way of mutual friends and/or their social media personas… the good, the bad and the ugly.  In my generalized opinion, all are well-meaning, sometimes pleasant people like many others, but…well…frankly none of them are representative of me or the more red-necked, less polished citizens of the Commonwealth like myself. But I digress.

 At issue for the CNMI, not unlike many other parts of the Nation (although we certainly have a unique set of challenges here), is the matter of workforce development.  Anyone who raises their hand presumably to help lead the CNMI into prosperity ought to hone in on workforce issues — it is not as simple as counting the number of jobs versus the number of workers.  Education, workforce, industry and political leaders need to work together in a way that is responsive to skills and opportunity gaps through upskilling of incumbent workers, investing in infrastructure and meeting community business needs in real time to name just a few.

I had occasion to hear the Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor, Julie Su, speak at the National Association of Workforce Boards conference last month wherein she spoke forcefully (with conviction, passion, etc., etc.) on workforce issues.  “Opportunity should not depend on the zip code you live,” she said.  To paraphrase further, she exclaimed that we don’t have a shortage of labor, but rather a shortage of quality jobs — I might qualify that to say a shortage of qualified workers is at issue as well.  At the end of the day, the American worker needs to feel a sense of security and safety in knowing that he can support himself and provide for his family, but each of us still has a personal responsibility to be qualified in whatever job we hold.  The same, by the way, is true for those who want to hold the seat in the Office of the People of the Northern Mariana Islands.

As for opportunities in the six-seven-o, the prospect of there being none is a frightening thought and not so far-fetched either —  146 Saipan Hyatt associates might agree.  Even scarier though is that opportunities may be abound, but we either cannot see, do not want or will not go after them for ourselves.  The proverbial elephant in the room is a general lack of self-accountability, lackluster work ethics and an unwillingness to get after what we need.  Some of us prefer to lean back into our sense of entitlement and point fingers at or complain about those hustling to get by — this world does not owe any of us anything. 

At the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation otherwise known as OVR those of us who work here are daily witnesses to the balancing act between the availability of jobs, worker qualifications and the perfectly imperfect nature of humans. With our mission to increase employment and promote independence for individuals with disabilities, we put federal funds at the disposal of eligible persons with disabilities to obtain, retain or maintain employment.  Here’s the thing though, we can only help those who want to help themselves — individual / personal choice dictates our outcomes.

It's easy to espouse concern over the broader notions of workforce needs — investing in education and training programs to leveraging technology, for example, should be foregone conclusions — and we need people working to make that happen.  Ultimately though, when we’re talking about workforce — or human capital — we should also be talking about the capacity work with others despite differences in opinion.  As for the next U.S. Delegate for the CNMI, “Leadership is influence” (John C. Maxwell) and, “The challenge of leadership is to: be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly” (J. Rohn).  And by the way, “If you think you are leading and turn around to see no one following you, then you are just taking a walk.” (John C. Maxwell)

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