Default launches new chapter of bad press for P.R

This week the government officially declared default over some $400 million the Government Development Bank (GBP) owed to its creditors. However, although governor Alejandro García Padilla said he had no money to pay, he did indicate the next day that he payed the interest of the what was owed, an act of “good faith” aimed at continuing negotiations with the commonwealth creditors in hopes of establishing a voluntary forbearance agreement the same way PREPA did.

The story on the Puerto Rico fical crisis suddenly gained extensive coverage in the so-called mainland, to the point where White House press secretary, Josh Earnest; Treasury secretary, Jacob Lew; and even the GOP “presumptive” presidential candidate, Donald Trump, all had something to say on the matter. Earnest reaffirmed the executive branch’s “direct” involvement in the situation and blamed the republican congress for not acting on time. Lew warned of future defaults from the government (Thanks Captain Obvious), and Trump declared himself “the King of Debt”, and said Puerto Rico should not be bailed out, all the while not specifying if our cash strapped island should have the same bankruptcy protection as states.

This is gonna be a year long issue and by the looks of the coverage its receiving in the U.S media outlets, it looks like Puerto Rico is gonna catch a lot of bad press in the following months. Between the fiscal crisis, the zika crisis, and the humanitarian crisis, I wouldn't be surprised if public opinion on our isla del encanto goes down the toilet. This directly affects tourism, federal funding, and if the proposed oversight board gets presidential approval it may even overhaul the way we are governed. Instead of an entire hive of corrupt officials governing, only half a dozen rich american men will take the reigns, free to do as they see fit with our finances and public policy.

But lets take a quick look at other issues raised this week.

Teachers seek job permanence

According to the president of the Teachers Association of Puerto Rico (AMPR for its spanish acronym), Aida Díaz, the local public school system has more than 2,500 transitory teachers. These educators are given a 1–3 year contract with the Department of Education to work in a specific school and afterwards they either get their contract renewed or are sent somewhere else or, in the worse of cases, are laid off.

However transitory teachers enjoy the same benefits as their permanent counterparts. They have days off, they have the same salary (which is significantly lower than US teachers), and they contribute to their own retirement fund. Diaz warned this will pose a problem in the future with the teachers retirement system rapidly draining and projected to be insolvent in 2 or 3 years (along with government retirement system). Having two separate retiring funds will pose a big problem when the inevitable arrives, and when it does teachers will opt to leave for the states.

Permanency, Diaz argued, will give local teachers the job security they need to stay, and also provide justice for those teachers who have been classified as transitory for more than a decade.

The AMPR is also currently developing a collective agreement, a version of which was sent to the Department of Education this week. Although they plan to negotiate issues like job security, licences, and evaluations, it wont be until next year when they can solicit a pay raise for teachers, which all teachers unions agree has been long overdue. Whether it helps retaining teachers or not, time will tell.

Independence Party insists on a status referendum

Maria de Lourdes Santiago, Puertorican Independence Party (PIP) gubernatorial candidate, presented this week a concurrent resolution to approach Congress with a single claim — to celebrate another status referendum with the classic choices of independence, statehood or free association.

In a conference she held along with the old and new guard of the political party, she insisted her part in this issue is of putting the legislation for the consideration of her fellow red and blue legislators.

That same day, Resident Commissioner and New Progressive Party (NPP) gubernatorial hopeful, Pedro Pierluisi, was invited to speak before the local Contractors Association in special series of forums where candidates like him could present their proposals. I asked Mr. Pierluisi, as president of the NPP, if he would support such legislation. He replied, “… only a estadidad: sí o no plebiscite will resolve the status issue once and for all”, and added that any other effort to that end delays resolving the status issue.

In retrospect, I half agree with Mr. Pierluisi. Surely status referendums have been held with a myriad of choices and they have all come out with varying results. The most recent one had a majority of people voting in favor of statehood, but with hundreds of thousands of ballots were discarded as a result of incumbent Alejandro García Padilla’s calling to leave it so in protest. If you put the blank ballots into the final result, you get another result with no reachable consensus.

A direct question such as : “do you want to be a state” could once and for all produce a clear consensus on the issue. But lets face the facts, statehood is not a right, but a concession exclusively given by Congress. And if those in Capitol Hill don’t feel like granting something simple as Chapter 9 protection, what make Mr. Pierluisi so confident that they will act upon a result that narrowly favors statehood as the new status?

Surely, both gubernatorial hopefuls believe resorting to the same old tricks will somehow produce a different outcome. Albert Einstein had something to say about that kind of action.

PDP logo gets a makeover… But lets be honest we don’t care

From Pan, Tierra y Libertad to Unidad, Trabajo y Prosperidad. Popular Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate, David Bernier, seems hellbent topresent himself as a completely different candidate who shares nothing with his former boss, Mr. García Padilla. From opposing the incumbent’s proposed Value Added Tax (IVA for its spanish acronym), to criticizing the governors strategy to deal with fiscal crisis, Dr. Bernier is trying his best to avoid being associated with the current administration while posing as the next big thing for the PDP.

His latest effort was changing the party logo in three aspects: Replacing the slogan, changing the direction of the silhouette, and adding one of a woman behind the man wearing a pava on his head. Representatives Sonia Pacheco and Luisa “Piti” Gándara were there the moment the logo was presented and both erupted in cheer and applause when it appeared on all four HD screens placed in a small restaurant in la placita de Santurce.

Bernier indicated he had not yet presented the new logo to the PDP governing board, and said he knew he would face criticism over it. However the main political leaders of the party seemed pleased with it. Mr. García Padilla said it was “chulísimo” while Senate president, Eduardo Bhatia hailed the inclusion of a jibarita.

After the announcement, I asked about a dozen people what they thought of it. Most were unimpressed, a few liked it.

https://soundcloud.com/radioisla1320-1/sondeo-que-piensa-la-ciudadania-sobre-el-nuevo-logo-ppd-1

Next week, Mr. Jacob Lew will be visiting Puerto Rico. If his visit is the same as his last, we can’t expect much from him at this point. But that will be another issue for another time.