The rightful veto: a victory at home

By Kambes Kesolei

Last Monday, President Johnson Toribiong vetoed the bill designed to open Palau to gambling activities. A bill hailed by few in OEK as solution for jobs and increase of minimum wage. Yet, no one is willing to answer where did the bill come from or who drafted it.

The casino bill is dead – for now, at least.

Its death is triumphant news. Not because it settles the debate on casino industry, but brings to fore what was feared lost in the Republic’s social and political development. The veto proved that the grassroots, the traditional leadership, and social organizations could still play a pivotal role in shaping the future direction of the nation. Indeed, the moral and intellectual fiber of this young Republic survives and well.

By exercising his veto power, the president sent a clear message that gambling bill is no trivial matter and must be treated with due diligence. “The bill reveals that it appears to have been rushed,” said Toribiong in a blunt veto message. It is such kind of unambiguous statement that serves to regain public trust of the political process.

As expected, the veto caused hysterics among the proponents of gambling, which seem to have started the next morning without fail. The public, however, takes the rejection of the bill as a welcome relief, an indication that all is not lost in the top echelons of policymaking. In a three-page statement that the president wrote himself, showed a cerebral president who believes in the robust and effectual deliberation that intellectual discourse contributes to solid policies. Something that is less evident in this current congress.

Despite ethical concerns and open disregard of respectable behavior, influential OEK members used their positions and public megaphone to disparage and intimidate citizens and organizations from presenting their side of the debate. The strong-arm tactic employed to force the public to swallow the bill after a junket trip to South Korea has been brought to an embarrassing end. Stopped dry on its tracks by successful effort of citizens defiantly refused to leave their future at the hands of a few, so blinded by selfishness and interested only in the game of power and not in the welfare of the country.

And more to the point, there is flowing optimism once again that the future of the Republic will not be made based on instinct decisions but by wisely taking time and deliberately listening to all of the arguments, pro and con, and open to dissenting views and pushing for more details with fair treatment to everyone. On that line, the president’s veto is a mark of an intellectual that have been sorely missed through out the entire political deliberation.

With the veto, the first of his presidency, the president summed up the sentiment of the overwhelming majority of the citizens of Palau. “The innate image that people have of casino gambling will tarnish the wholesome image that Palau has been cultivating…the future success of our tourist industry hinges on our strengths – our environment and culture – rather than get-rich-quick schemes such as this bill,” added Toribiong. Great job, Mr. President!