LEADING VIEQUES
“Where there is no vision, the people perish.”
The Old Testament Proverbs 29.18
Never before in Vieques have our citizens become so painfully aware of how poorly we are treated compared to others in the US. Our Commonwealth and US governments have let us down, ignored our needs, and demonstrated their utter incompetence providing for our wellbeing. We all now know that we must develop the capability to fend for ourselves, to become more self-sufficient, and to take an active role in the management and development of our island community. If we are to have any hope of creating an environment conducive to the success of the youth of Isla Nena, we must take responsibility for our own future.
With the bankruptcy of Puerto Rico and the aggressive imposition of economic hardship upon us from the US congress (through the Jones Act and the passing of the latest tax laws), it is clear that, with our low priority, Vieques will suffer tremendously over the next 20 years if we don’t act to grab control of the situation.
We have to ask ourselves as residents if we, too, are not part of the problem. For instance, if someone suggested to you that in order to salvage our electrical service and correct the mess that PREPA has made of the entire Commonwealth, the Municipio should take charge of the island distribution grid, you would probably respond with something like: “Are you crazy? We have no experience, and nobody at the Alcadia knows anything about electrical distribution, much less running a business for the benefit of the community.”
Five years ago, I said almost exactly the same thing. The last several mayors have demonstrated this same attitude toward a variety of opportunities. Central Government agencies and PREPA agree and actually laugh out loud at the mention of Vieques running anything.
WE WERE ALL WRONG!
We were thinking in terms of the existing government format. We assumed that we would be required to organize, train, equip, and manage in the same way PREPA, the ATM, and myriad other government agencies function, and of course, we aren’t qualified. BUT, there is a much better way that is used effectively all over the world: We hire a world class expert to help us create a performance specification that we can use to solicit bids from well established, competent, and leading firms to operate and maintain our grid to the high quality level we specify. If they fail to perform, they are fined and/or replaced.
We need to WAKE UP! Neither the Governor of PR nor the President of the US is any more knowledgeable about operating a grid than we are. They are not able to run a generator or repair an electrical line, but so what? We don’t need to perform these tasks either. We must hire the best proven expert contractors who can – and then manage them! We must to be the ones to specify our needs.
The leaders and citizens of Vieques must take over responsibility for the infrastructure of the island or suffer at the hands of poor planning, reduced funding, and low priorities forced upon us by the Central Government. While we can acknowledge that we do not have the operational experience, we do have the expertise and initiative to specify our requirements, hire expert contractors to satisfy our needs, and manage the contracts to ensure compliance.
Lack of budget capacity to finance improvements is often the fatal flaw of many plans. When we examine the ledgers of the municipality, we won’t find existing expense entries for water, electricity, ferry service, or any of the other categories representing our infrastructure because these services were never before provided through local government. One could, therefore, conclude that we are in a hopeless situation, but we are not. We need to realize there are options available to us:
- We can include the financing of the required improvements as part of the contractors’ bids with repayment from the monthly fees off of the grid services
- We can form a community cooperative where electrical users are also owners
- We can apply for infrastructure improvement grants for which we were never before eligible because we weren’t owners or operators. Fortunately, we have an experienced federal grant writer on staff and have access to several more.
No one is going to give us a seat at the table or control of anything: we have to take it. We must have a credible plan, and we must convince the Central Government that we will make it work successfully and transparently. We have access to distinguished experts to assist us. This is the way it is normally done in the civilized world!
We can do this. In fact, we must do this if there is ever to be the kinds of improvements that will make a future for the island that our young people will choose to participate in. We must make our island a showcase of sustainability and an inspiration for others to take charge of their destinies and throw off the yoke of disinterested, self-serving government agencies.
“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there “is” such a thing as being too late. This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action.”
Martin Luther King Jr.