These informative & thoughtful inputs were extracted from:

Micronesia Forum: CHINESE IN YAP
http://www.micronesiaforum.org/discussion/9273/chinese-in-yap


Dwarf, October 2011
An opportunity riddled with unknowns but an opportunity nevertheless. Let's not shy away from unseen or the baseless but let's take stock of the present -- are we confident there are more of these around the corner? Are there better deals possibly down the road? Are we content to remain as we are to protect our culture and environment? Will the world let us be, without another power contesting our right to our 200 miles EEZ? In my opinion, ETG is as good as any other -- the challenge is if Yap and the FSM can develop development plan that can ensure protection of culture and environment.


Mor Watit, October 2011
An opportunity shrouded in mystery would be a more appropriate description. Hence the need to proceed cautiously. We can be overcautious and miss the opportunity, or we can be overconfident and dig ourselves into a deep hole. This is a double edge sword we are playing with, we have to be on top of our game and walk that thin line, one little slip and we fall one way or the other. Being a very conservative Yapese, watit opts for "better to be overcautious, than to be over confident" approach.


Mor Watit, October 2011
And perhaps not so may golf courses or maybe take it out altogether. There cannot be any buildings in Yap over 3 stories high, due to soil condition. It should be somewhere in a yap state building code or something. no man made beaches, it will destroy a lot of fishing grounds. And limit the numbers of tourists on island at a time. limit number of flights, watit does not want to be awaken up in the middle of the night by planes. No tourist traffics through the villages at night. Again watit doesn't want to be awaken up in the middle of the night. No picture taking without permission unless they want their camera smashed. No bikinis in the villages. No public show of affection in the villages. As a matter of fact, just keep the tourists away from the villages. just take them out into the middle of the Ocean and let them swim, hehehe hopefully watit's friend Mr. Shark will be around to say "hello" to these nice tourists. hehehe


Bull02, October 2011
Construction of casinos is the first step toward society destruction.


Belas, October 2011
To answer Dward who mentioned a very good point is, how about setting up a trust fund or anything of that sort that will be like the green fee departure tax in Palau that is collected to fund the protection of the environment in any way the money seems fit but in your case, it will be directed exclusively toward maintaining and enhancing your culture and environment also.
Like take the case of Alaska and how their residence get compensated for the oil they drill over there. If you think about it deeply, this, hopefully, if fully endorsed by your leaders and developers, can have a positive impact on your society at far as I'm concerned.


Dwarf, October 2011
Belas,
Thanks for the contribution, hey I'm one of those that believe Yap should look to Palau, Guam, Saipan since they are ahead of the progressive development and use what may be appropriate in its situation. We are all looking to better ourselves and some of us are a little ahead by virtue of better planning. In the cases of Palau, Guam and Saipan, I understand that Palau may be similar in its aspirations while Guam is more American-inspired, Saipan was the TT capital, not sure of her development goals but she is way infrastructure-developed than all of the FSM states. All three entities are seriously looking for cultural revival to ensure their way of life gets passed on, fortunately at this time, Yap is still living its culture which creates hardship in other ways but seems to act as a buffer for overzealous capitalistic progress.


14daroad, October 2011
Is that 1, 2, or 3 Bs? or is it 4 B? Sure sounds too good to be true. What does China want in Yap? Why Yap and not PNI where the land is twice or three times larger than Yap proper? Or even Palau where it is even bigger? WHY YAP? Did the Chinese see something that the native Yapese are oblivious to? Does it have anything to do with Yap's geographic proximity to Guam where the military build up is slated to occur? I am just curious.
Oh well, I tip my hat to the super committe in Yap, and I hope they look at every aspect of this gymongous offer.


peace2u, October 2011
as of now no super committee in yap as the legislature has not appointed its two members to the task force. the committee on resources, education and development has been assigned the task of reviewing the governor's letter calling for the creation of the task force and the appointment of the two members from the legislature. the chairman of that committee is off-island and won't be back for another week while the deadline created by the governor for the task force to basically identify lands for development, owners of those lands, and types of developments on those lands is november 30, 2011, less than a month from today. talk about haphazard approach to development!!!


Gastuw, October 2011
I Think we as Yapese people should have a say about this so called ETG development group..Should
have discussions and be briefed on the matter at hand by our government..Development is a good thing
but all good things also has a negative side or impact and that is what we the people should consider, Not only
the NOW but the LONG RUN....


gayuch, October 2011
"The Yap State government has not agreed to any development plans in Yap but it is in the process of forming a taskforce with several mandates." What a load of bull!! Yap has NOT agreed to any development, huh? SMARTEN UP PEOPLE!! If it has NOT agreed, why is the governor already calling for a "Work Group." Isn't that rather pre-mature if we TRULY, haven't agreed to anything? And why the heck are we involving public-elected, government officials in securing land owned mainly/mostly by private individuals. Just think about that. Somewhere, somehow, someone has already given the Chinese enough room to move in and the ball is now rolling, that, AND ONLY THAT, is a reasonable explanation to why the Governor of our state along with a select few is flying on a communist-chartered plane.
And for all those of you who are FOR this development, STOP and think for a little bit. Rack up all of whats left of your brain cells and come to your senses. Development is always great, but not at the expense of the citizens of our state. The Chinese are moving in and looking to buy out more than half of the Island, do you all plan to never have children? Where will your children call home? OKAY, so you get a payday that makes you feel like you've won the lottery because you've either spent all your life working dead-end jobs or a single wad of cash has your blood racing. NEWSALERT, just like ANYONE and EVERYONE who's stumbled onto large sums of money, you will spend it all faster than it might take the Chinese to open up for business, and you'll have NOTHING left. None of that dirty money will be left and you'll end up renting an apartment or if you've moved off-island, you have nothing else to call your own.
Get real.


Noob, October 2011
Belas, I was just making a mere factual observation no need to get worked up. I can make a list of all the good things about developments if you want from Guam, Saipan or Palau but that is obvious to anybody and is not the point of my post.What Yap is interested in is the bad side of such developments to help its citizens make a decision. Our limited land mass can not sustain such developments and therefore should not aim to emulate Guam, Saipan or Palau. Yap should choose its own economical destiny based on its own resources and ability and not copy paste another islands developmental plans. This has nothing to do with Guam, Saipan or Palau but Yap as this thread indicates.


Garoman, October 2011
Siro..Siro ngodad ni gubin..
The bad omens of the white man..development, like anything else, has its pros and cons..The white man did bring in diseases, junk food, etc..but he also brought along with him education, health care, cars, and all the other commodities we enjoy today..The fact of the matter is, we can't be against development..that's just plain stupidity, ignorance, arrogance and what not..because if we are, we would look even more stupid posting comments here..Now, somewhere along the line, Yap has to develop because the children we are raising and chasing everyday to school will surely come back to the dead end jobs we in..So, that leaves us with the question..What kind of development do we want for Yap and our children? We can't wait for our children to come back from school and make the change. We ourselves must make the change, isn't that our responsibility as adults?
Anyways, Yap gave its proposals to ETG with a general overview of how they want development in Yap..details will be made clear once once ETG submits its final proposal..I'am definitely sure that Yap's proposal reiterated the importance of CULTURE and ENVIRONMENT as i do know that ETG plans on having a compound or two running on green power..geothermic or solar..ETG wishes to exhibit the YAPESE CULTURE and have it inherited in its development plans..so if they do have hotels up and running expect to see a few faluws peebays, etc..here and there..
Let us all be to open to development but that doesnt mean jump into the fire..let us not be another hawaii or tahiti, let us be Yap..If we claim to be Yapese, and we claim to hold our culture most dearest to us, then nothing can take that away from us..not the chinese, not even communism..our greatest enemy is ourselves..losing your identity is like digging your own grave...


Mor Watit, October 2011
Garonman,
Siroo, siroo ngom, ma siroo ko gubin e girdii, ya gathi gag e mang ni nga ug welthin nib yoor nga fithik dad. Siroo, ma dab gu af machan bee.
watit think we are all in agreement as to the developmental idea. Yap must develop and change with the rest of the world. we can all agree that the development must be within our capacity, and not be detrimental to our environment as well as our culture. Watit is very concerned about the magnitude of the ETG proposal, Yap just doesn't have the capacity for that big of a project. To do so would result in an interruption in peoples lives and homes. the question for watit is would ETG agree to a scale down of their vision? a much, much smaller project? And what happens when the tourism industry takes a turn for the worse, would ETG leave us hanging? Much like what the Kingtex did? We are paying for that mistake still to these days. we are paying for a lot of fuel to run a very big generator that we only use about 50% of its power. Those are some of the things that bothers watit about these big developmental ideas. Kamagar......


Mor Watit, February 29, 2012
Yes, Yap needs to develop, that goes without saying. But what we need to be careful about is this; who should develop Yap, and how is Yap to be developed? Watit does not understand too much about business, economics, and investments. But seems to watit, that any investment, whoever makes it, expects some kind of return. in that line of thought, foreign investment results in a return to the foreign investor with very little consideration for Yap. Yap may get a fraction of the yield but not a whole lot. In the end, we get used. Watit had said time and time again, we must think small scale, it is manageable (given our limited expertise and technical knowledge), it is affordable (resources), and it yields a 100% return for our efforts. Lets not sell ourselves short on this idea of we need outside help. that is total BS! we are just as good as anybody else. The Chinese are just as human as we are, if they can do something, so can we. Let us get rid of this defeatist mentality.


Mor Watit, 2012
That is another thing, that level of service must be scaled down. it is not realistic to maintain it, continuing to do so will only increase our dependency on foreigners goodwill. How hard is it to tell yourself, I cannot afford to eat steak everyday without the support of my uncle, since my pay is only so much I must change my eating habits and eat more fish.
FYI, the revenue for Yap state has been increasing but not enough to keep pace with the government expenditures. watit will repeat that once again, YAP STATE REVENUE HAS BEEN INCREASING! unfortunately so has her expenses, Yap must cut down on her expenses, no two ways about it. Its very simple math, yap state revenue cannot continue to grow if yap state continues to operate in the red. Only by cutting down on expenses can Yap state come to realize a surplus in revenue, that is money which can be invested towards development. Growing on hand-outs is not the way to go, growth must be within our means and capacity. Watit practices this in his everyday life in light of his meager paycheck. Yap state as a whole, must learn to do the same.


Mor Watit, 2012
who cares about those migrating out of Yap, that is their prerogative, they dont want to do the hard work, fine, go elsewhere and make your living. Those that want to stay in Yap and do whatever it takes to make Yap float on her own, must roll up their sleeves and get on with it. who said anything about going back to the olden days? Its only a scaling down that's needed. In case you have been sleeping for the past 30 yrs or so, Yap state is the only state in the FSM with a fall back savings. But in order to make it work lots of government expenses must be cut and/or scaled down. You should ask the people of the other states that question, what will happen to you comes 2023? Yap state will be fine.


Mor Watit, March 1, 2012
so Far its only been an MOU and a proposal put forth by the Chinese side. Nothing has been agreed upon yet. Nothing is definite yet. The chinese are pulling all the stops probing every which ways. Watit has total confidence that the government of Yap State know exactly what they are doing. Its only common sense, and Yap did not get to where she is at today if she did not employ common sense in all decision making processes.


Yangfelfel, April 16, 2012
It looks like nothing is slowing down with this ETG. The Chairman of ETG Deng Hong and several top guys are coming to Yap later in April from 23 to the end. Why are they coming here no one knows. Is another agreement going to be signed? Do not know but who knows the way things have been handle that just might happen and when it does they will make sure that no copy is available to the people. They continue to say that there is not enough information to inform the public about. That is a shame. With all of the people coming to Yap from ETG and Governor and others going to China and we can still say to the people that there is not enough information to share with the people? Something is fishy about all of this stuff. The color of money has taken over the sensibility of people who were elected to safeguard the welfare of people. Maybe Mr. Deng Hong will finally come to present the ETG Master Plan to destroy Yap and develop the ETG Yap Paradise for tourism and not the Yapese people.


Yangfelfel, April 23, 2012
Well, well. Chinese in Yap! Wow even after the Legislature adopted a Resolution asking ETG to refrain from taking further action in Yap State in connection with its investment plan until after the people of Yap have been fully informed of the components, impact of the ETG investment on the custom, tradition and lives of the people and future of the State and until the Legislature has approved for ETG to further its plan investment in the State.

Chairman Bruno Tharngan sent a letter to ETG Chairman Deng Hong saying that he has heard from Governor about their coming to Yap and that they are delighted look forward to welcome them and advised Mr. Hong that there are rumblings and grumblings in the State but those will not impact what was agreed in the MOU between them which they signed.

So the ETG plane roared in yesterday and they are here and another plane may come tomorrow with the ETG people and the FSM Ambassador to China and Secretary Marion Henry. What will they say and why are they are? Those are questions. Before our people are fully informed of this ETG Investment the higher ups of ETG and the FSM are pushing to get the investment start. I am sorry for our Government, that is all.


fsmer, April 23, 2012
kully,
"mis-leading the people"? nearly two thousand people were misled by a handful of DOE workers? ridiculous. stop this campaign of misinformation. the only misleading happening here is on the part of the council of pilung and the anefal administration, which seem hell-bent on implementing the ETG scheme with little regard to the professed confusion and outrage of the yapese people. yap's future hangs in the balance, and yet you are content with throwing smoke in the people's eyes and impeding the efforts of those who want transparency and integrity in this ETG situation. shame on you, sir/madam.

as for the legal effect of the resolution, it is true that the legislative resolution is not binding, but that does not change the fact that ETG's original proposal and yap's counter-proposal (which i read on a separate forum, and which a number of sources have assured me was rejected by ETG) require the yap state legislature's explicit approval before the proposed investment scheme can be implemented. as long as the yap state legislature holds firm to the spirit and letter of its ETG resolution, and as long as the thousands of yapese who have signed/supported the ETG petition continue to voice their concerns about the government's rush to action, i suspect that the ETG investment will be stymied for a while. whether that will result in transparent information-sharing with the public remains to be seen. i'm not holding my breath, but i'm not giving up hope, either. the yapese people are not dumb, and they do not take kindly to being patronized and, yes, misled.


rzrbck, April 24, 2012
I hope so. I am truly against virtually any Chinese activity here in Yap. I would like my children and grand-children to be able to use their land for what they would like to use it for, not what some chief or politician decides.


Dwarf, April 24, 2012
There are foreign investment regulations in place, may not be adequate but existing, and the executive branch is spearheading development prospects and possibilities as required. The COP had basically stated that it doesn't see any threat to traditions and cultures, as defined in the limited scope of the MOU between COP and ETG, paving the way for the Executive Branch to do due diligence and public education. The Legislative Branch in a resolution had urged Governor to educate the Yapese people about the ETG developments, the good and the bad, you might say. Concurrently, concerned citizens had petitioned the Leadership to educate the people of the State about the ETG proposals. At this time it seemed, the Legislative Branch through a resolution wanted to halt the conversations between ETG and stakeholders until such time it feels it safe for the process to move on. I think this is posturing to muddy up the educational and developmental process, the Legislature's role is to provide development policies, regulations to improve and protect the lot of the Yapese people; it is not doing that intentionally at this time, it wants to stop the conversations. Are we satisfied with our lot today? Are we doing better than we did 5 years ago? Is some other investors coming? Agriculture, Fisheries and Tourism is the priority of development for the FSM as well as the State of Yap. Guess which of these three will accomplish that proverbial "kill all with one stone"?


fsmer, April 24, 2012
if the COP truly believes that the ETG scheme does not pose any threats to our traditions and culture--despite ETG's naked desire for casino gambling, the extensive razing of hallowed traditional land holdings, and the tight control of maritime comings-and-goings, among other alarming ambitions--then the COP is in complete dereliction of its constitutional duty and should be ignored and/or disbanded. even if the COP is correct in its assessment, how has that "pav[ed] the way for the Executive Branch to do due diligence and public education" when the anefal administration continues to insist that there is not enough information to educate the public, despite the numerous meetings held by ETG with the COP and the anefal administration (not to mention the two proposals and the MOU already bandied between ETG, the COP, and the anefal administration)?

as for the legislature's resolution, the point is not to "stop the conversation"--the point is to have a public conversation in the first place! if that conversation can be genuine, comprehensive, and transparent, even better, but at least have a conversation! the COP, the anefal administration, and their allies want to shoehorn this investment scheme into existence without having the very sort of conservation that the legislature and thousands of yapese want to have. why? i'm not a genius, but i don't need to be one in order to figure that the COP and the executive branch know a stinky deal when they see one (or, at least a stinky deal for those who are not in ETG, on the COP, and in the anefal administration), and they don't want to give the public the opportunity to question ETG's scheme and expose its many, many faults.

it is not the legislature that is "muddy[ing] up the . . . process," nor is it the many, many yapese who signed the ETG petition and routinely profess outrage at the breakneck pace at which the COP and the anefal administration are proceeding. no, dwarf, it is our traditional chiefs--the supposed guardians of our cultural way of life--and the anefal administration--the supposed executing branch for the interests of the people--who are being hasty, conniving, delinquent, and short-sighted. forget about five years ago, dwarf--what about five years in the future, ten years, twenty, when our lands are ruined, our fisheries are devastated, our claim to cultural integrity dashed, our people broken, all because we were hoodwinked and forced to accept our own doom? we are still a proud and enterprising people, no different than we were five years ago. that will change in the blink of an eye if ETG and its yapese allies get their way.


Dwarf, April 24, 2012
Fsmer,
Do you envision any kind of development, say from US investors that would not affect our traditions or culture? The Compact funding continue to erode our traditional way of life, what's new, huh?. Extended families and large nuclear families are no longer as favorable as the norm due to financial hardships in the cash based economy. I guess my point earlier was that the Executive Branch is mandated to create jobs, development, etc. to serve the need of the state. The Legislative Branch has its own roles and functions which at the moment seems confusing. The Legislature will not put forward any development plan but now that one is being proposed, they are all over it to drown it out. Are we anticipating something better down the road or can these leaders join forces now and explore something better for the people. I know for a fact that the Legislature has been invited from the beginning to collaborate, offer comments, input and leadership to explore ETG interests, to no avail until the COP drew up the MOU with ETG. Even the Executive was fumbling all over the place, again until COP fired that first bullet (MOU). The ball is rolling, the process is moving -- this is not the time to stop the conversation, the petitioners are very much part of that process. The Legislative is not the Executive and the COP members each have own sphere of geographical influence.


fsmer, April 25, 2012
dwarf and kully:
thank you for your comments.
i agree with dwarf that pretty much any development plan will have some impact on our customs and traditions. that is inevitable. the issue, though, is making sure that such an impact will be minimal, be counterbalanced by numerous positive benefits, and be the product of an exhaustive and transparent consultation process with the people of yap. so far, the ramp-up to the ETG investment does not promise to satisfy any of those criteria. the original ETG proposal will, among other things, severely tax yap's natural resources without adequate governmental oversight, push for harmful gambling, and commit the state of yap to a slate of improvement projects that will leave yap with all the risk and without much protection down the line in the event that ETG decides to pull out of its scheme. and, of course, this is all happening without the input and involvement of the people of yap in the negotiating and planning stages--the most critical stages in this entire process. a scheme of this magnitude cannot be left to the devices of the executive branch and the COP while the people of yap are left in the dark. this is why thousands of yapese signed the ETG petition and routinely voice their dismay about, and disapproval of, the ETG scheme. how can the anefal administration be so deaf to the cries of its own constituents?

i will not comment, kully, on your characterization of speaker falan. i think the readers of this thread--and the majority of the yapese population--know who the true manipulators and connivers are in this situation. i will also not comment on your characterization of the legislature's involvement (or lack thereof) in the negotiating process, except to say that the recent letter from the legislature to the anefal administration paints the exact opposite of your assertions, insisting quite convincingly that the anefal administration did not diligently consult with the legislature before seeking a full proposal from ETG. i will, however, agree with you (and with dwarf) that the yap state leadership (including the yap state legislature) needs to have an alternative development plan in the event that the ETG scheme does not get off the ground. contrary to what you may believe, i am not opposed to having ETG invest in yap. i am, however, opposed to the frightening, destructive, cynical scale of ETG's proposed investment scheme, and i will support only a limited, sustainable ETG investment that fully involves the yapese community, respects our customs and traditions, and strictly minimizes any impact on our fragile natural resources. if ETG cannot scale down its original scheme to meet those criteria, then i oppose ETG fully, and i suspect that i will not be the only one. in that event, though, i would like the leadership of the state to let me know what the alternative development prospects are. if not, then we will be back to square one.

as for the recent reception thrown for the chinese visitors, i am not sure that one can draw the conclusion you have drawn, dwarf. two members of the legislature attending a welcoming reception does not equate to a transparent, exhaustive, respectful dialogue between the COP, the anefal administration, and the people of yap. the fundamental criticism that i and many yapese have about the ETG situation is that the executive branch and our traditional chiefs have repeatedly refused to openly and fully brief the people of yap on the complete scope and content of the ETG scheme, from the tabling of the initial ETG proposal to the present day. the administration's frequent insistence that there is not enough information to brief the people is ludicrous, laughable, and downright insulting to the people of yap. a single welcoming reception, whether or not attended by members of the legislature, does not in any way excuse the anefal administration and the COP from their continuing obligation to brief the people and allow the people to comment on--and, yes, critique--the ETG scheme before any decision is made. the purpose of the ETG resolution and the ETG petition remains, and the anefal administration cannot wash its hands off its duties by simply throwing a party and inviting a few legislators.

again, thank you for your comments, dwarf and kully. i hope you will join your fellow citizens (assuming that you are yapese) in holding our leaders accountable and refusing to let them beguile us with promises that are hollow, self-serving, and ultimately detrimental to our personal values and precious resources. we deserve to be informed, we deserve to be heard, and we deserve to be taken seriously. the anefal administration and the COP have so far refused to pay us that minimum of courtesy, and you should be just as outraged about it as i and many other yapese are.


Yangfelfel, April 25, 2012
The information we got from the reception and from reading the State Press Release, make us very concern because there seem to be among our people people who are already doing things the Chinese way, which accurate reporting is a foreign concept. The Reception that is being talked about was not by the State Leadership and the ETG is the one paying for the Reception and so how can it be labeled by the Government press as a joint state leadership welcoming dinner. What I was told is that people who went there spend the time eating the many food that was served and they continue to eat until they were ready to leave and the their main hosts Deng Hong of ETG and the President of the Export Import Bank, who is a well known member of the higher up in the Chinese Government or State Council were there and did not say any word with anybody and they just got up and went up to their rooms without as much as saying good bye or some gesture that people make when departing. So if that is the attitude then it is all a matter of time before they put their foot in the doorway and after that it will be all Chinese way. So the Reception is we everybody did noting but eating so the ETG Project is based on how much food you can consume, never mind how much destruction will do to your life and the future of your island.
Example, yesterday a Chinese person went into YCA to buy a pants and so as soon as he got to where the pants were, he simply undressed right there in full view of everybody else and tried the pants he wanted. That is one Chinese out of the possible 4,000.
Well, well, well


Mor Watit, April 26, 2012
People,
we are all smart here, lets not try to insult each other's intelligence by arguing most illogically. The bottom line is that the people have spoken by way of the petition, the Legislature had taken the necessary steps to comply with the people's wishes. The resolution might have been authored at the YSL, but the request contained within came from the people. Its not Legislature vs. Governor anymore with this matter. Its what the people of Yap want, no more, no less. It is not very complicated, really, just let the people in on the matter. How hard is that?


fsmer, April 26, 2012
mw,
thank you for expressing in one paragraph what i tried to express in way too many paragraphs. it really is as simple as that; "let the people in."


Dwarf, April 26, 2012
MW,
how come the Legislature doesn't call in the Governor for a public broadcast on the proposal? The Legislature passed its first resolution for public education on the project before the people's petition -- the Governor had put forth a counter proposal, I believe, hopefully in consultation with COP and the Speaker not yet responded to by ETG. The ETG visited earlier this week bringing along a prominent banker to hob knob with the leadership, I believe members of COP hitched a jet ride with ETG delegation to Pohnpei and back this week also. I believe anybody in the state can put in their own two cents to the Governor and that may be what is happening informally; however, there has to be a venue for public to join and the Legislature chamber is the appropriate venue. At this point, nothing is formalized -- do we believe stake holders should be involved in the nitty gritty or should our leaders bring us the big picture in a public education manner? I know petitioners want a plebiscite on the project which is desirable considering the scope of the proposed project.
I stand by my comment that the China man should have been attended to soon as he was spotted browsing through clothing. I've seen too much to assume everybody knows everything about different kinds of people, let alone an outsider seeing us in kafar, lava lava, thu, going topless, picking noses, spitting all over, stained teeth -- a quick checking pant size may not be as out of place in this China man's mind. Bare naked?? I believe if you dig far enough, it may not have happened "bare assed" as was described.


fsmer, April 26, 2012
dwarf.
i believe the legislature has requested governor anefal to publicly brief the people about the ETG scheme--whether through a comprehensive public education program or in a public hearing at the legislature--and to do so right way, before negotiations with ETG proceed any further. governor anefal has so far done no such thing--hence, the public's confusion and consternation.

as for whether "stake holders should be involved in the nitty gritty," i say yes, given the "scope of the proposed project" (as you point out). ETG's proposal is not some run-of-the-mill investment scheme that a duly appointed investment review board can vet on its own; ETG's proposal, in its current iteration, will impact virtually every aspect of life--commercial, environmental, political, communal, familial, cultural--in yap, and the yapese people need to be fully informed and fully involved in all stages of the negotiating and planning for the investment, especially if it means giving the yapese people the opportunity to critique the ETG proposal and voice their very legitimate concerns. given the sort of actions that the anefal administration and the COP have taken so far--secretive, duplicitous, ill-informed actions--i cannot wait for "our leaders [to] bring us the big picture in a public education manner." if the anefal administration and the COP have their way, they will negotiate a deal, strike it, and bind the state's future to the ETG scheme before they ever educate the public of the scope and content of the scheme. the whole matter will be a fait accompli, and any "public education" will be a farce.

as for the naked chinese man at YCA . . . um, i'm not touching that with a ten-foot pole.
thanks for your comments, dwarf.


Mor Watit, April 27, 2012
Dwarf,
Why are you asking watit about YSL matters? That is their business, just as keeping the public informed in matters pertaining to ETG investment is the governor's responsibility. Watit is not interested in finding anyone to blame. Watit just want to know WTF is going on. Watit has had a chance to ask representatives from ETG directly and got very unsatisfactory answers. Talk about beating around the bushes! At any rate, watit is still waiting for answers and watit believes the governor is the person who has all the answers to his questions.
you seem to be confused about "outsiders" and "locals." As long as Yapese are on Yap, they may wear their traditional attires however they chose. Any outsiders who has a problem with that may go to the airport, get on the plane and GTF out! If a yapese women was to go off island and decided to wear her traditional clothes, watit is sure that women will be arrested for public indecency. The fact of the matter is that these mofus chinks dont give a damn on who they piss on as long as they get what they want. "we respect the culture of Yap," said one of the ETG representatives. A very strange way of showing it..............


fsmer, May 1, 2012
tes,
thank you for your comments.
my apologies for not responding sooner. i did not realize until very recently that micsem had shut down its forum; i thought that this discussion had become stagnant, and i failed to find out about the latest responses to this thread until now.

two main responses to yours, tes:
1) the legislature does not have the power to subpoena the governor, the COP, or any other individual, whether private or public. i'm no legal expert, but i'm pretty sure that subpoena powers are exercised exclusively by the judiciary. generally speaking, the legislature cannot compel the appearance and testimony of government officials on any matter in the legislature's chamber. (there may be an exception for someone who is nominated by the executive branch for a government position and who needs to be confirmed by the legislature, but i'm not completely sure. i stand to be corrected by the legal beagles in this forum.) even during public hearings on, for example, the state's budget, the legislature cannot require representatives from the executive branch to appear at the legislature and answer the senators' questions. the legislature can merely request such an appearance. people usually comply because it is in their best interests to do so, but the legislature has no true police power here. which leads me to:
2) even if the legislature has "subpoena" power, that does not change the fact that the primary responsibility for educating the yapese public about the ETG scheme remains the anefal administration's (as well as the COP's). it is with the anefal administration and the COP that ETG has engaged almost exclusively throughout the negotiating process. it is the anefal administration and the COP that possess the full breadth and depth of information available so far on the ETG scheme. (and yes, that information is quite extensive, despite claims to the contrary by the anefal administration. there have been two full proposals exchanged between the two sides already!) it was the clandestine, opaque, conniving actions of the anefal administration and the COP that prompted nearly two thousand yapese to sign the recent ETG petition calling for a halt to negotiations with ETG and demanding that the government "fully inform, educate and disseminate to all the general populace relevant information regarding the components, impact, and status of the proposed ETG investment in various mediums and forums."

it is completely disingenuous to place any blame on the legislature when it is the anefal administration and the COP that hoard all the information about the ETG scheme and refuse to share them with the yapese public. the legislature cannot compel the anefal administration and the COP to divulge that information. the onus remains firmly on governor anefal, his cabinet, and the COP to do what the people of yap clearly want them to do. don't try to confuse the issue with this obvious attempt at shifting blame to where it does not belong, tes.

another point, one that is related to the foregoing points but which has not really been discussed in this thread:
the ETG petition insists "that no further agreement and promises, both written and oral, be made by the Government and the Leadership of Yap, on said proposal by ETG until such time that the people of Yap have duly expressed their free will on the said proposal in a plebiscite to be funded by the Government of Yap." will there indeed be a plebiscite? this, in my opinion, is where the legislature has an obligation to act. if the legislature heeds the will of the people who signed the petition (as well as the many other yapese who, i am sure, support the petition but did not sign it for one reason or another), then the legislature must fund, plan, and provide for a plebiscite on the ETG scheme.

if the anefal administration and the COP are smart, they will try to get ahead of that scenario by briefing the public sooner rather than later, so that the public's clamor for a plebiscite dies down. i'm not really holding my breath, though, and to be completely honest, i want a plebiscite. it's one thing for people to discuss things in homes and villages and forums like this one; it's another thing to cast a vote in favor of a particular action or measure that binds the state. the people of yap are no longer the moribund, deceptively easy-going caricatures of yesteryear. there is an exciting renaissance of public engagement afoot in yap, and the leadership of yap (particularly the anefal administration and the COP, but also the legislature) will do well to appreciate and embrace that movement rather than aggravate it with more secrecy and deception and broken promises.


tes, May 2, 2012
fsmer,
Thank you for clarifying.
My unpopular perspective was for the purpose of gaining a balanced discussion, and I apologize if I have offended anybody, since that was not my intention. My hope was that we stop with the finger-pointing, from the perspective that all are far from perfect, team-work is crucial for attaining some perfection, and that a well-rounded team has diverse views.
I am neither a lawyer nor do I possess any legal training. I may have misunderstood Yap State Constitution Article 5 Section 12 as written: “The Legislature shall have and exercise all the authority and attributes inherent in legislative assemblies, including the power to institute and conduct investigations, issue subpoenas to witnesses and other concerned parties, and administer oaths.”
Thank you for your comments but I shan’t give up hopes that our leaderships work together toward the best interest of the public. After all, a leader can't always depend on the voting public, since the wishes of the majority voters are often times ill-informed, not comprehensive, thus, not always in their (public's) best interest. For example, if we were to adhere to every whim of the majority, we wouldn't be paying taxes.


fsmer, May 2, 2012
tes,
thank you for your response. i think i watch too many "Law & Order" episodes--and don't read the yap state constitution enough times! my apologies. i stand corrected on the subpoena matter. thank goodness for true legal minds in this forum!

however, as i state in point #2 in my previous post, even if the legislature has the power to subpoena, that still does not change the balance of information and power in this situation. the primary responsibility for educating the people about the ETG scheme remains with the anefal administration and the COP. the legislature can subpoena people as often as it wants, but those people still need to show up and divulge information, and that's much easier said than accomplished. besides, a legislative hearing is not the only way for the anefal administration to educate the people--it may not even be the best way. rather, the anefal administration and the COP can just as easily hold joint public education seminars, perhaps several at community centers throughout yap. there need not be any hostile subpoenas involved, just a genuine, respectful, transparent process of consultation between the yap state leadership and the people of yap. that process needs to happen now, before any significant steps are taken in the ETG negotiating process.

i also do not agree with your characterization of the ETG petition effort as a mere "whim of the majority." clearly, this issue has struck a deep chord with a large percentage of the yapese population, and for good reason. rather than dismiss the people's concerns, the leadership needs to respect them and address them head-on, sooner rather than later.

having said that, i do agree with you that "all are far from perfect, team-work is crucial for attaining some perfection, and [] a well-rounded team has diverse views." the relationship between the executive, legislative, and traditional branches of government in yap is unsteady, to say the least, and i really hope that the branches can find a way to work together constructively for the sake of the state and her people. this is a tremendously trying time, and personal politics and vendettas must give way to the public good. am i optimistic that a rapprochement will occur? not really. have i given up hope? no--but sadly, i'm getting there.

thank you again, tes, for your response.


tes, May 3, 2012
fsmer,
I appreciate your comments, but we mustn’t lose hope and optimism.
According to a recent news release, preparations for informative hearings and a state economic summit are underway. The Anefal administration and the YSL's Finance Committee have tipped forward the first domino piece toward a well-informed public. This may aid the concerned public become qualified (well-informed) for the plebiscite. Again, thank you and I paste below an excerpt on the state's progressive undertakings.


peace2u, May 3, 2012
tes,
let me correct some of the statements in the press release.

the reschedule of the public hearing was done at the request of the office of planning and budget since lt. governor and kensley will be off island during the time the hearing was originally scheduled. it was not the committee on finance which had some other commitments. the chairman of the finance committee made that clarification during the session today.

on the economic summit, it was chairman mulalap who first introduced the resolution to convene a state economic summit during the 7th legislature and the first year of anefal's first term of office. it is not until last week that anefal requested funding for the summit. i guess it's better late than never.


tes, May 3, 2012
peace2u:
Thank you for clarifying.
I agree that Governor's Communication No. 8-160 would consist of the commitments of the administration rather than the YSL's. Despite the petty political clutter, the public may finally rest assured that their whole leadership is engaging the predicament, toward the best interest of the public. Thanks to all competent leaders, and especially the commendable chairman of the finance committee, who has saved the day!


Yangfelfel May 17, 2012
Do we really believe that Chinese and ETG really care about our culture, custom and traditions? Well for me, I do not think they give a damn by just watching what they are doing around the island today. They have very little sensitivity to what we do and what we are. Just come to the Public Forum on May 21, 2012 MONDAY!