H.E. David W. Panuelo Inaugural Address

 

H.E. David W. Panuelo

Inaugural Address

 

“IHENG” pohn Mwolen Wahu en Pohnpei U. Oh ketdien rahnet unsek.

 

Mwohn ei pahn patohieng nan ei tungoal sakadara, keipwenih pahn kupwuren samatail Koht me wia koht en koht akan oh Nahnmwarki en Nahnmwarki kan.

 

Ahi tungoal sakaradahn wahu oh keipweni tohrohr pohn Ereksohko en Pohnpei U.  

1. Kepwenih pohn erekso Isipahu, Nahnmwarki en Wein Madolenihmw;
2. …Erekso Sahngoro,  Nahnmwarki en Weinsohn U;
3. …Erekso Soukihsehlong, Nahnmwarki en Wein Kitti;
4. …Erekso Nahnpwutak Pekiniap, Nahnmwarki Wein Sokehs;
5. …Erekso Pwoud Lepen Nett, Nahnmwarki en Wein Nett;
6. …Erekso Doukasa, Nahnmwarki en Wein Pingelap;
7. …Erekso Peiweilong, Nahnmwarki en Wein Sapwuahfik.

 

Wahu lap pahn kupwuren Iso Nahnken Ko, Likend Ko, Nahnalek Ko, Nankeniei Ko, oh sapwelimahr lapalap keidi kan koaros nan pali en Tiahk.

 

Pwehki ketdien wasa lapalapko, I men patohwan pekihda ahi tungoal lepin ahnsou pwe ien warohng sakarkihda plan kesempwal akan, ohng keirdahn nin limatail kahndeke kapatapat de FSM nan mwehi en government kapw, de Administration kapw.

SALUTATIONS

Before I begin my Inaugural Address, I wish to recognize and pay my respects to all of our distinguished officials and guests who grace us with your presence today. This is indeed a beautiful day; we welcome you all to Pohnpei the seat of the Federated States of Micronesia.

1. Traditional Leaders of the FSM;
2. The Honorable Vice President George & Mrs. George;
3. The Honorable Speaker Simina & Mrs. Simina;
4. The Honorable Members of the 21^st FSM Congress and Your Spouses;
5. Chief Justice Yamase and Justices of the Supreme Court & Your Spouses;
6. Your Excellency, President Heine of the Republic of the Marshall Islands;
7. Vice President Toatu of the Republic of Kiribati;
8. Secretary Wilkie, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs;
9. Special Envoy Furuya, Member of Japan’s House of Representatives & Chairman of the Japan-FSM Parliamentary Friendship League;
10. Special Envoy Yang Chuantang, Vice Chairman of the Chinese Peoples’ Political Consultative Conference;
11. Minister Hawke, Australian Ministry of International Development & the Pacific;
12. The Honorable Namoliki Neemia, Special Envoy to the Prime Minister of Tuvalu;
13. The Honorable Sadang, Special Envoy to the President and Minister of the Ministry of Finance, Republic of Palau;
14. Former President John Haglelgam;
15. Former President Manny Mori;
16. 1^st Speaker of the FSM Congress, Mr. Bethwel Henry;
17. The Honorable Governors & Lt. Governors of our FSM States of Pohnpei, Chuuk, Kosrae, and Yap;
18. The Honorable Leon Guerrero, Governor of Guam;
19. The Honorable Speakers and Members of the States Legislatures & Municipal Chiefs and Councils;
20. Members of the Diplomatic Corps & Foreign Dignitaries;
21. Members of the Clergy;
22. Distinguished Guests;
23. Ladies & Gentlemen;

Before I go further, I want to first thank my family members who are here with me today. First Lady Patricia Edwin—I thank her for being my partner over the years in the hard work of working with our citizens. 

 

My children who are here with us, they sang the national anthem—we have Joshua, Jenna, DJ, and Alex Panuelo and our grandchildren. My brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews: I have Frank Panuelo here, Kumar Panuelo, Lucy Panuelo, and my sisters in laws and brothers in law who are here. Last but not the least, I’d like to also recognize my mother. My dear mother, her name is Alberdina Panuelo. She’s sitting here this morning with us, she’s going to be 85 soon. My father—our dad passed last year, it’s one of those days where I wish he could be here to be part of the celebration today. But just a little bit about my mother: when I was in 8^th grade and left for a retreat, as 8th grader,…my mother cried. Today even as a President when I leave she cries. I want to recognize my mother for being the amazing woman that she is, and for raising a big family, and the family I brought with me today is just the tip of the iceberg.

 

There is a couple I want to recognize today and they are my special guests, I believe they arrived from Beaverton Oregon. David and Daisy Rothgery…can we give them a round of applause please? They are two human beings who are so humble but we owe them a lot. A lot of us who are here, who are leaders and citizens, David helped us out while we pursued our education at Eastern Oregon University. And we thank you, David and Daisy, so much.

 

On behalf of Vice President George, First Lady Edwin & Second Lady George, our families, and the citizens of our great Nation, it is OUR greatest honor and pleasure to welcome you all to our home, the Federated States of Micronesia.

 

For those of you who are visiting us for the first time, we extend to you our warmest island greeting. You will be our guest for the next few days and we hope that you will take time during your short stay to enjoy the paradise in our backyard. I coined this term paradise in our backyard because it’s literally true: every time I go overseas and come back, I realize how beautiful our islands are. So welcome to our paradise.

 

Our Nation prides itself on its values of respect and hospitality, and it’s my wish that your time here will reflect those values.

 

Thank you all for joining us on this momentous occasion to celebrate the newly-elected Leadership of our young Nation.  And to the citizens from across our islands and overseas who are joining us on the radio and livestream: Kaselehlie, Len wo, Ran annim, Mogethin, and welcome to your Capitol.  

 

Standing up here today, this morning, as your new President isn’t my success alone. My family played a big role, my constituents played a big role—our Congress played a big role. And you play a big role today by joining us here on this historic and celebratory occasion. May I ask that you please turn to your neighbor, and thank each other for being friends to the FSM, and for making the FSM a Nation with many friends around the world?  May I please ask that we turn to each other and shake hands with each other?

 

I am beyond honored to have the opportunity to serve you, my fellow citizens, as your Ninth President of our great Nation, the Federated States of Micronesia. I was a student when the vision of an independent Micronesia came to be, and when our Constitutional Government began forty years ago. Our forefathers dreamed of a Nation that exercised its sovereignty on a global level on international issues, yet retained a deep respect and appreciation of its cultural and environmental heritage.

 

That’s why the theme for this administration is “Our Actions Today is our Nation’s Prosperity Tomorrow”. Our founding fathers’ actions have secured our freedom and self-governance. We owe a debt of gratitude to all our founding fathers.

 

May I ask that we give all the citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia and those visiting to give our founding fathers a round of applause?

 

As a new generation of modern-day leaders in a modern-day Micronesia,we must now focus on our Nation-building process by building on the foundation, and accomplishments, of our forefathers to truly benefit our people to whom we are duty-bound to serve. As your new President, I believe that delivery is more important than any promise. And so, “Action Speaks Louder Than Words.”

 

 I have been a public servant for most of my life—in the Department of Foreign Affairs as a Foreign Service Officer and as the Deputy Ambassador to our Embassy in Fiji and later to our Mission to the United Nation’s in New York. I served also as Director of Pohnpei’s Department of Resource Management & Development, and most recently as a Senator in the FSM Congress. I look forward to working closely with my esteemed colleagues and friends in the FSM Congress to serve you, each and every one of you, my fellow citizens.

 

Shortly after I became President, I quickly learned that the walkway between the President’s Office and this Congress Chamber is called The Longest Yard. Even though the distance is short, I suppose it has this name because of the difference in approach and political views that existed between the two branches on policy matters.

 

My very first letter I signed as President was to Speaker Simina, inviting him and Members of Congress to join our recent and very successful trip to Washington, DC. I am confident that Congress’ participation in the meetings played a vital role in the overall success. This initial step is a clear demonstration of my intent to change the perception of the distance between [these] two branches of Government.

 

Mr. Speaker—under my administration, I intend to build the closest working relationship with you and the Members of our Congress.

 

Let me clarify myself, my dear citizens: I am your President, which means I am your public servant. I will serve to protect you and your interests. I will work with everyone—the Congress, State leaders, traditional leaders, religious leaders, non-government organizations, the private sector, and all of you, my fellow citizens.

 

Let me repeat myself: “Our Actions Today is our Nation’s Prosperity Tomorrow”, so I call on each and every one of you to take action today to make our Nation prosperous tomorrow. I will work with you—you, the hardworking farmer and fisherman; you, the hardworking teacher and mother; you, the student struggling and studying to become a lawyer, a doctor, or engineer; and each and every one of you, my fellow citizens.

 

My vision—what I dream the FSM to become—is a Nation that is fully united; not just in words, but in ideas that are demonstrated through actions. I am a Micronesian before I am a Pohnpeian. Vice President George is a Micronesian before he is a Kosraean. Speaker Simina is Micronesian before he is a Chuukese. And Senator Figir is a Micronesian before he is a Yapese. It’s not that I want us to lose our individual island identities; it’s that only by recognizing that we are bound together can our canoe, our Nation, arrive at its destination. We are proud citizens of one Nation.

 

Which leads toa fundamental question that we must ask ourselves: at this juncture of our Nation-building process, where do we go from here, and what is that destination?

 

On May 14^th, just a few days after I took my oath of office, I received my dear friend Bishop Julio Angkel. He gave me three gifts, each symbolic individually.

 

The first gift—which was a paddle—represented a Micronesian canoe’s capacity to propel and guide its movement, like how collaboration between the Executive, the Legislative, and the Judicial branches must propel the Nation forward; the second gift—which was a rope—represented tying the parts of a canoe together, like how our leadership must unite the Nation and create ties and bonds with the broader world community; and the third gift—which was a mat—represented a Micronesian navigator’s star compass, wherein the navigator lays stones representing the various stars that will guide the canoe, like how our sense of unity and commitment must guide the Nation to success.

 

It’s in that spirit of working together that I would like to thank Speaker Simina, who has agreed to invite me to address the Nation in our State of the Union message next May. Congress and our people deserve to know what the Executive Branch is doing, why, and how.

 

This administration will be transparent, open, and accountable. I have begun to strengthen our citizens’ trust and confidence in our national leadership.

How will this administration betransparent? I will continue to expand the intensity of information releases from the National Government. Thanks to you Speaker Simina and Members of Congress, my administration is bringing more staff on board to liaise with the State Governments and to work in our Public Information division to ensure that you know what we are doing, why we are doing it, and how we are doing it.

 

As your public servant, I will ensure that there is so much information about what’s going on in our Nation that we will find it as normal. For too long it has been traditional in Micronesian culture that news be treated as a commodity—something to be closely held, guarded, and used for advantage. And for too long the National PIO has been underutilized. My administration has changed this tradition.

 

How will my administration be open? As you are aware, we have made great strides and progress in laying the foundation for telecommunications connectivity throughout the Nation, predominantly through the deployment of fiber optic cable which has reached our States of Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei, and soon to reach Kosrae. We are presently beginning the expansion of connectivity to our hospitals, to our schools, to the businesses, and homes, and we will continue to exploit this capability by improving the ways in which we deliver government services in all sectors, including health, education, infrastructure, and finance, to name a few. Additionally, the National Government will establish a standalone Office of Information Technology. All of this equates to over 100 million dollars of investment in this sector by the FSM National Government and the World Bank.

 

How will my administration be accountable? I will seek to strengthen our National Public Auditor’s Office, by providing more staff and financial resources. We will more frequently generate financial audit reports on the use of public money—your money—and also on the quality of the work being done in general through increasing the number of performance audits.

 

To do all of this,I need cooperation not only from the public servants within the National Government but cooperation from each and every one of you, the citizens of this Nation. Working together with a unified vision and purpose will make our islands another promised land.

 

My vision is for the FSM to become an even more eco-friendly Nation, with our pristine environment an embodiment of our common heritage. You arrived into our State of Pohnpei, and I believe you’ve experienced how green our islands are.

 

Through cooperation with our development partners and powerhouse philanthropic organizations, we can protect and promote our more than one million square miles of ocean and stunning terrestrial forests into a global sanctuary or preserve.

 

We are fortunate that we live in paradise. We are blessed with clean water and air, fertile soil and healthy reefs, majestic mountains and captivating sunrises and sunsets. We can’t take these for granted, because they are a gift from above.

 

That’s why I invited Mr. Ted Waitt and the Blue Prosperity Coalition to visit the FSM to meet with myself and FSM State Leadership. We met a few days ago, and discussed a partnership on ocean conservation between the Nation and the Blue Prosperity Coalition, which includes the National Geographic Society, the Waitt Institute, Oceans 5, and Dynamic Planet.

 

Among other outcomes, the National Geographic Society will be conducting a research expedition across all four FSM States next year, including producing a film on the FSM to be shown to a global audience. It’s exciting, my fellow citizens, and we’ll be announcing the details of our work plan at the United Nations General Assembly in September this year.

 

The United States of America invented and created the first National Park, which has been called America’s Best Idea. The Federated States of Micronesia can invent the idea of, and be the first, Global Heritage Sanctuary. Among other things, the creation of our Micronesian Global Sanctuary would demonstrate our unique commitment to combat climate change, deforestation, and ocean acidification.

 

Environmental protection cannot be something we take lightly, because as human beings we are merely transient occupants of this planet, bestowed with the awesome responsibility to be its guardians. And protect it and guard it we must. When we consider that 60% of the World’s wildlife has perished in my own lifetime, and nearly 500 species have gone extinct in the last century, we must recognize that prosperity isn’t only synonymous with profit-motive and dollar signs; prosperity is also the health and vitality of our forests, our oceans, and our rich biodiversity.Our Nation can be, and must be, and will be part of the global solution in the quest for environmental sustainability.

 

As Pacific Islanders, we have depended on our subsistence as our livelihood for centuries, and conservation has been commonplace since our ancestors. Unless action is taken today, there will come a day where we realize that we cannot eat money. Our position on climate change has been strong in the past, is strong today, and will be stronger tomorrow.

 

In everyday life—and this may sound naïve—there is nothing more powerful than kindness, nothing more necessary than cooperation, and nothing more important than love. That’s why with kindness, cooperation, and love in our common humanity, we can protect our environment and make the World a better place for everyone.

 

Our teachers, our doctors, our builders, our mothers, our fathers, our brothers, our sisters, our daughters, and our sons carry on their shoulders the burden of wondering what will happen in 2023. And that’s why my administration will emphasize that we begin and conclude negotiations for the Compact of Free Association, as Amended, with the United States, our partners, with whom we share an enduring partnership. It is important to accomplish this sooner rather than later, for the benefit of all. We will remove that heavy burden of uncertainty and concern for the future and replace it with optimism and confidence that we’re moving in the right direction.

 

You may recall that ten days after I was sworn into office, I met with His Excellency Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America. From the meeting with President Trump and his senior officials, our joint statement with the White House demonstrated our pledge that in no uncertain terms the United States’ position is to renew the expiring provisions of the Compact. During the visit I also met with members of the U.S. Congress, who expressed their support to extend the Compact and that they will be ready to take action. Both the Executive and Legislative Branches of the U.S. Government demonstrated that our persistent and perpetual relationship remains enduring.

 

The FSM National Government has been preparing for negotiations through its Joint Compact Review & Planning Committee, which is about to appoint our Chief Negotiator, and it stands ready to work with the U.S. Government on renewal of the expiring provisions of the Compact.

 

I am very encouraged from the recent developments and positive statements presented during the oversight hearings by the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources by representatives from the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of Interior, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) regarding the continuing interests in the United States in supporting the enduring partnership with the Freely Associated States.

 

While I was in DC, I had the honor to meet with Secretary Pompeo of the U.S. Department of State.

 

The first thing that Secretary Pompeo said to me was “How can we help you?”—and we must have spoken for well over an hour with candid discussions. And my fellow citizens, a full week from today Secretary Pompeo will be visiting our Nation at which time we will continue our discussions on pursuing the renewal of the expiring provisions of the Compact, which should be more favorable and accountable based on the increasing needs and challenges facing our Nation in health, education, and infrastructure.

 

While in D.C. I also had the pleasure of meeting with the Honorable Robert Wilkie, who is here with us today—thank you Secretary— who graces us today with his presence. Yesterday, I hadthe honor to join Secretary Wilkie in a wreath-laying ceremony to pay respect to our Veterans in the U.S. Armed Forces who have paid the ultimate sacrifice. It must be repeated that our citizens in the U.S. Armed Forces are a key component of our relations with the U.S.  They epitomize our enduring partnership and our shared values, and we thank each and every one of our citizens who serve.

 

I am very grateful to note the recent developments in the U.S. Congress to enact The COFA Veterans Review Act, which is legislation to enable our FSM Veterans living within our country to access healthcare benefits. In my meeting with Senator Lisa Murkowski, Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources, she clearly stated that everyone who answers the call to duty, and is willing to serve in the armed forces, should be accorded the opportunity to take advantage of the benefits available to all veterans regardless of where they live. The FSM thanks all sponsors and co-sponsors of the Act.

 

As we are aware, there is a Compact Trust Fund with approximately 680 million dollars invested. It is predicted that this Trust Fund will not meet our Nation’s needs by 2023. A report issued last week by the U.S. GAO reaffirmed this by noting that the Trust Fund is “unlikely to fully replace expiring U.S. Annual Grant Assistance.”

 

It is worthwhile to note that we have a second and separate Sovereign FSM Trust Fund. My administration will give high priority to this Trust Fund. It is of crucial importance that we strengthen our investment strategy in this [Trust] Fund, and we have in fact seen success in this area. In the last four to five years, we increased our sovereign Trust Fund from 7 million to about 260 million dollars today.

 

The FSM has taken initiatives in partnership with the Micronesian Registration Advisers (MRA) that is bringing nontraditional sources of funds into our country through registration of major corporations from Japan. 50 percent of this corporate revenue and 20 percent of our fishing fees are earmarked for deposit into our sovereign FSM Trust Fund. I congratulate Congress for their accomplishments to act and pass legislation that helps us accelerate our investments into our sovereign FSM Trust Fund.

 

With the priority that this administration is putting on the FSM Trust Fund, I am inviting our development partners to join us in these effortsto build this platform for self-sufficiency for our future generations.

 

We are always humbled and grateful for the generosity of our development partners, especially those who have established a presence in our Nation, namely Australia, People’s Republic of China, Japan, and the United States of America. We deeply appreciate each of them and this administration will continue to build stronger partnerships with mutual benefits for all.

 

As a member of the global community, we know that our World has many legitimate challenges facing it. Having known war, we seek peace. Pacific peoples have always had a unique way of working together with our land and sea, where human life is deeply valued, and where respect, dignity, and civility are the norm.

 

The FSM’s location in the Pacific lends itself to being vulnerable to policies and actions pursued by our large developed neighboring nations. As the new President of our young and sovereign Nation, I am appealing to our larger, developed partners for a sense of respect and recognition of the consequences that the Pacific Island nations may face as you continue to pursue your national and international interests in our region and beyond.

 

To develop our economy, we must acknowledge that we can sustain ourselves. It won’t be enough to ask others for help. If an economy is a pot of gold, then when we buy goods from each other we are generating internal wealth. When we are importing goods from abroad, we are taking wealth away from the pot. When we develop goods for export, we are increasing the total amount of gold in the pot. I have recently visited the Coconut Processing Facility in Tonoas in the State of Chuuk. This promising project for the FSM has the potential of exporting one million gallons of coconut oil annually.

 

We recognize that opportunity to generate wealth in our Nation is very challenging, as a Small Island Developing Nation. That’s why in the coming months I’ll be submitting to Congress a proposal to help develop an entity to endow would-be businessmen and women with the tools they need to develop and implement their ideas, with an emphasis on export-oriented production and services, such as the Green Banana Paper in Kosrae.

 

 

Fisheries remain the FSM’s most valuable natural resource, as a Government revenue source of income, as a source of food security, and as a source of income for our local fishermen. Maximizing our benefit from our tuna fisheries, which is currently valued between 65 to 70 million dollars annually, while ensuring its long-term sustainable management and development, will be one of my administration’s top priorities.

 

I will be working with our development partners and domestic fishing companies to invest in more onshore development programs to create employment opportunities for you, our citizens. I will be directing our fisheries agencies to develop, and adopt, a Fisheries Investment Policy within the first year of my administration to ensure that we are making progress on generating revenue and incentivizing onshore development. The most recent initiative is the ongoing construction of the fish processing plant in the State of Kosrae, which will contribute greatly to Kosrae’s economy.

 

You’ve likely heard me discuss national development in terms of infrastructure a lot recently. I’ve met with the State Leadership of Chuuk about this matter after the 24^th Micronesian Islands Forum, to discuss among other things the backlog of our infrastructure funds under the Compact of Free Association. There are 197 million dollars of funds sourced from the Compact that have not been spent.

 

It will be a priority to work with our State Leaderships and the United States Government in addressing how we can remedy the bottleneck under the JEMCO process so that implementation of infrastructure projects can continue without delay. Under the State & National Leadership Conference which I plan to call later this year, we will also address systemic constraints that cause these delays on the FSM’s side, particularly with land issues and technical capacities within our Nation.

 

I’m going to ask that the majority of our incoming 60 million dollars from World Bank grant funding go to road projects throughout our Nation. We are grateful to our development partners for developing our secondary roads in some of our States, but we must develop a climate resilient road system throughout our entire Nation. It’s a crucial part of our development, and as noted by the international development community, it is transport infrastructure that accounts for the largest portion of economic losses following disasters in small islands states.

 

Our Nation’s development is a serious concern, so serious that we can’t waste any time. But development isn’t merely about physical infrastructure, and it isn’t merely about money. It’s about people. It’s about the development of our human resources.

 

I am standing here in front of you today in part because I was privileged enough to have the opportunity to receive an education. But education is not a privilege: it’s a human right, which requires public servants—teachers and administrators—who are passionate and empathetic, and leaders—like your President, like your Congress—who forego any semblance of politics and focus strictly on what’s best for children. Not just mine, not just yours; all children of today and future generations so that no one is left behind.

 

If the education system and our support for it means the complete and total support of what’s in the best interest of children, what can you and I do about this today and over the next four years? It means increasing the amount of local funding to support the public education system, so that our schools reach and exceed the requirements under the FSM Accreditation process. It means putting in more money for scholarships, so that our children don’t find themselves in a lifetime of debt for merely trying to improve themselves and contribute to society. These are burdens that must be shared by the National and State Governments, and so I call on Congress to consider appropriating sufficient funding so that the National Government meets its share of the burden.

If we want our children to become capable adults who contribute to society, then it behooves us all to take healthcare seriously. Our Nation presently has numerous health crises, from non-communicable diseases like heart disease and diabetes, to challenges with anti-biotic resistant bacteria and issues like insufficient prenatal care—which is why Vice President George and I are putting our full support towards improving the health sector.

 

Chuuk and Kosrae will receive new hospitals under the Compact of Free Association Infrastructure Funds—60 million for Chuuk and 19 million for Kosrae. But that’s not enough. We must, and we will, endorse legislation that regulates who sells which medicines, and how, and when, and where, and why.  We will address the NCD crisis by producing legislation that increases import taxes on foods high in sugar and salt content, as well as increasing taxes on tobacco and alcoholic products.

 

Any legislation intended to benefit the citizens of this Nation will only matter if we also enforce the laws we already have in place. That’s why my administration, through its commitment to transparency and accountability, is going to ensure that the law reigns supreme.

 

We will rebuild the Transnational Crimes Unit. We will join the International Criminal Police Organization also known as INTERPOL. We will strengthen our National & State police force’s capacity and their morale. The next step is a thorough review to determine what additional resources Departments need to not only accomplish their mandates to protect and serve our Nation but to do so in a way that ensures our customs, immigration, quarantine, and police officers can be productive in their work.

 

My fellow citizens, I have seen the looks on your faces when you talk about 2023. So I tell you today that by May 10^th 2023, at the end of my current term, our Nation will be brighter than the stars that navigate us from island to island. We will make it happen, you and I together, because we are responsible for who we are; and who we are is Micronesian, singing the same song as we paddle together.

 

This is a new day, and a new era. As enshrined in our Constitution, which turned forty just a couple of months ago, our Nation seeks Peace, Cooperation, Friendship, and Love in our common humanity. As a Pohnpeian woman once said, “the World is round so that it may be encircled with friendship, and bounce back from any challenge.” Our Nation is united, and it will never know separation or division.

 

As your President,I will serve you as I will ask that you serve each other. I am your public servant and the personification of our Nation at home and abroad, and I am honored and proud to be your guardian. I am resolved to work closely with our Congress to serve you and work to meet your needs. The task of Nation-building is a monumental one, and so I will ask for cooperation from the political leadership, the traditional leadership, and from you, my fellow citizens.

 

Thank you all for being here today, for being a part of this historic occasion for our new leadership. Your presence enhances these inaugural events. And for those who are joining us from afar, we extend to you our thanks and sincere appreciation for being a part of this celebratory occasion.

 

 My fellow citizens, I encourage you to continue remaining engaged in interacting with your Government as we “Take Action Today for Our Nation’s Prosperity Tomorrow.”

 

And I repeat again before I conclude my remarks: our theme is to take action today for our Nation’s prosperity tomorrow. I thank you all for coming to this inaugural celebration, on behalf of Vice President, Speaker, and the entire leadership of this Nation, we thank you all for joining this celebration and again welcome you to our islands.

 

Kalahngan, Kammagar, Kinisou chapur, Kulo mulalap, and Thank You All for giving me the honor to deliver my Inaugural Address. Thank you so much.