Governor says 'sorry' she has no power to fix the schools
By Mar-Vic Cagurangan
Why does the governor need to ask for authority over the Guam Department of Education when she holds such authority all along?
Guam senators asked—rhetorically— as they slammed the door on Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero’s request for the agency’s takeover.
The legislature on Friday voted down the governor’s Bill 2 (8-S), which would have allowed Leon Guerrero to take control of the education department for the remainder of her term amid the public school crisis.
“There's a lot that needs to be examined with the implementation of such a bill and what existing statutes it would conflict with,” said Sen. Chris Barnett, chair of the education committee.
“Don't tell me a two-page bill isn't going to cause problems when we're talking about an extreme power grab and a takeover of the Guam Department of Education,” he added.
Classes were initially scheduled to begin on Aug. 8, but delays in safety inspections of the facilities have prompted the education department to postpone the school opening to Aug. 15.
“If there was one person who should have seen the delayed school year coming it is Chris Barnett–yet he did nothing to prevent it,” the governor said. “He has failed as the education oversight chair, but he has excelled at calling out problems, blaming everyone but himself for the failure of our schools, while proposing no solutions."
Barnett retorted. “We didn't come out and say we were going to use the whole of government to help fix the schools. That was Adelup,” he said.
He noted that the administration promised to help fix the schools when it took the helm of government.
"It is disappointing but not unexpected that the legislature chose to retain its control over our public schools even though they have demonstrated time and again they are not capable of keeping our schools open," the governor said. "To everyone waiting for action, I’m sorry. We don’t have the authority to fix the long-term problems but we will do everything we can."
Barnett, however, argued that the bill would not guarantee the acceleration of school opening.
"This bill only gives the governor more power,” he said. “And nobody has asked for that except this governor.”
Leon Guerrero insisted that her proposed takeover of the education department
“was necessary not only to open schools this year, but provide long-term maintenance year-round.”
The governor claims the Organic Act prevents her from stepping in to address the school opening crisis and that the responsibility currently rests with the legislature.
Sen. Frank Blas Jr. alluded to the governor's ambiguous take on her authority.
“You're asking us to provide you with the permission to do something that you already have the power to do or that you
had previously stated that you have the power to do? What for?” the Republican senator asked.
Blas reminded Leon Guerrero that she invoked her authority as the governor in May 2022 when she raised the salaries and bonuses of education employees that cost the government $21 million.
“I questioned the authority of the governor to be able to do this in light order. There was no authorization statute. It was simply a memorandum that said this,” Blas said.
Speaker Therese Terlaje said she couldn't find a justification for allowing the governor to take over the education agency.
“We've heard the governor say these things, like ‘I have no authority over education,’ and now she's proposing we must give her this authority— a total blanket authority to pretty much wipe out any duties or responsibilities of the superintendent of education,” Terlaje said.
She noted that Superintendent Erik Swanson was the first education chief in 20 years to catch the mantle of responsibility for managing the school system.
“Now we want to remove all his authority. It doesn't make any sense. It doesn't sound cooperative. It doesn't sound like assistance. It sounds like a takeover,” she said.
Barnett questioned the political motives behind the governor’s bill.
“They only want it until 2027, just for the campaign of Lt. Gov. Josh Tenorio,” he said. “There's only one person on this island who's announced they're running for governor, and that's this lieutenant governor, Josh Tenorio. That's it. That's it. No one else.”
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