Letters: NDOT, BIA, fix the roads!

Here it is, the last stages of the term for the elected officials of Shiprock Chapter and one wonders at the accomplishments for the community. There is an existing list of at least 100 projects that the chapter president has shared a few times and some that I will mention.

The most obvious is the Bluff Road project that is said to be approved with a big dollar amount, which has been mentioned again and again, only to appease the people who use that road daily. This road gets graded once in a while, but it is only temporary. The potholes reappear after much traffic and after the winds blow the dirt out of the ever-exiting potholes, or occasional rains wash the dirt away.

The BIA road department has denied responsibility, indicating the Navajo Transportation Department has assumed maintenance of the Bluff Road. The BIA Division of Transportation has a mission statement that states:

“To provide for and assist tribes in the development of their capacity to plan, construct and maintain safe and efficient transportation networks.”
The Navajo Department of Transportation and the BIA Division of Transportation exist in name only, with people working there who have titles, and attend endless meetings to talk about fixing the roads. But, the problem is the talk does not produce any results, not any that will fix the Bluff Road nor the access road at the Indian Village which gets ignored and has never gotten bladed in many years.

Other responsibilities of the Navajo Transportation Department include the care and repair of the streetlights in the town of Shiprock. There are lights lining Highways 64 and 191, roads going in all four directions. In the daytime hours, the streetlights stand majestically and look like guards along the roads, but in the nighttime hours, those streetlights fail to come on and they are useless. The highway roads have many dark places that are unsafe for cars and pedestrians.

My question(s) for the local Shiprock Chapter government and the Navajo Transportation Department, as well as for the BIA Division Transportation, are why do you allow such unsafe conditions of roads that are traveled by school buses and private citizens to exist continually? Do not all Navajo people matter?

Wilford R. Joe
Shiprock, N.M.

Northern Edge going south

Happy New Year to members of the Navajo Nation from Totah. I wish everyone a prosperous new year.

The Council foregoes president report and moves straight to gaming report was uncalled for and is dumbfounded. Allow me to weigh in on it from a Navajo voter’s perspective. The move was intentionally done so that the Navajo people are kept in the dark about the status of the tribal government.

First it was stripping the president of his authority in dealing with the budget and now he is prevented from giving his state of the nation report. What’s the council’s next move?

The gaming report was very rosy and fruitful in Indian Country as given by Ernie Stevens Jr. Navajo gaming is just the opposite. There is no return on it and the weekly promotions are on a decline at an accelerating rate. The fact is Navajo gaming is at least 20 years behind other smaller tribes. There were way too many casinos built in a short time span without proper planning.

In particular, I would like to comment on Northern Edge Casino, which has been slowly dwindling in recent months. The weekly free plays have trickled down to an all time low. At the initial opening the free play for an average customer was $60 and currently it is $5, which is ridiculous. As a result, customers are returning to other casinos in the region.

Tuesdays were known as golden Tuesdays for seniors. They are not golden anymore due to the diminishing promotions. Promotions included a $15 voucher and slot tournament for seniors depending on cumulative points on slot play. Nowadays, a food voucher is $3 off for a $25 meal, which most seniors can’t afford. In other words, a senior citizen has to spend $20 from his/her pocket to be eligible for the $3 food voucher.

There is no such thing as fine dining at the Cedar Bow Restaurant and food preparation at the food court poses a health threat for those of us with a heart condition and diabetes. Much improvements are needed at both locations. Mutton stew, fry bread, and other meat items are very greasy. Mutton stew used to be served in large bowls and has been downsized to small disposable bowls used at flea markets. The cost remains the same.

Live entertainment, which had attracted an enormous amount of people from all over the Four Corners region, is banned. Many people are speculating and placing blame on new management. Is there really new management?

The casino personnel are another valid issue contributing to the overall operation. Multiple turnovers are apparent and escalating at Northern Edge. Many good employees are leaving and new management is suspected. Also, the hiring practice is reported to be based on who you know and not what a person knows, an old Navajo trick.

The other underlying problem causing the dwindling operation being speculated among the customers is the enormous cost in building the Twin Arrows Casino and Resort. Are the revenues from the New Mexico casinos being used to absorb the cost of Twin Arrows? Or did the Navajo Nation move super-fast in building four casinos in a short time frame?

In light of the above, I would like to say there is always room for improvement. It’s good Native food served at the Edge, but health consideration should be factored in during preparation.
Thank you for allowing me to express these issues and concerns. We will look forward to major improvements.

Vern Charleston
Farmington, N.M.

 

Tribe should have honored Pinto

What happened to the Navajo people in honoring our family member, Senator John Pinto? We should be the first to honor Sen. Pinto.

Thank you senator for your concern and the love you have for your people. You represent and provide services during your lifetime as a senator. Being you’re the Senate Indian Cultural Affairs Committee secretary for 13 years, I know you work and spend endless hours sitting in the roundhouse debating for your people of New Mexico and the Navajo Nation.

Our heartfelt thank you to the Hispanic group for honoring our family member for the Lifetime Award. There are voters of New Mexico who elected Sen. Pinto all through the years that love him and support what he does and has done for his people of New Mexico.

Again, thank you for the honor that he earned and by providing lifetime services to his people that he represents and the state of New Mexico.

Ileen Kline
Navajo, N.M.

Hotevilla residents must resolve leadership crisis

On Jan. 21, 2016, the Hopi Court of Appeals issued its Final Opinion and Order in the case of Hotevilla Village Board of Directors vs. Muriel Scott, et al., Case No. 2014-AP-0002. The opinion contained several significant findings and conclusions:
1. The Court expressed “serious concerns” about the actions of Muriel Scott and the manner in which she instigated the removal of the “elected” members of the Hotevilla Village Board of Directors on March 25, 2013.
2. The Court questioned how the “Interim” Board can possibly call itself the lawful governing Board of Hotevilla when their actions clearly violate the by-laws of the HVBOD which requires that HVBOD members be elected by the full membership of the Village. None of the Interim Board were elected to sit on the Board. They are non-appointed, unelected volunteers.
3. That five Village employees who were terminated by the Interim Board on March 26, 2013, may proceed to trial in the Hopi Trial Court on the claim that the Interim Board violated their rights to “due process” and “Hopi fundamental fairness.” At trial, the Hopi Court will determine whether the five employees are entitled to back pay for three years (back to March 26, 2013) and reinstatement to the jobs.
4. While the Court held that Article III, Section 3 of the Hopi Consititon precludes the Hopi Court from hearing and resolving the dispute, it recommends that civic-minded members of Hotevilla Village shoulder the responsibility of addressing and resolving these serious legal issues at the village level.
While the five village employees are preparing their case for trial in the Hopi Tribal Court, we are advised that the following events and activities will soon occur at the village level:
5. Pursuant to the recommenation of the Hopi Court of Appeals, in the coming weeks, many civic-minded members of Hotevilla Village will petititon the Interim Board to use the Hotevilla Village Youth and Elderly building to hold public meetings to address the present situation. We are hopeful that the Interim Board will cooperate and allow the use of the Youth and Elderly building by the people. The goal is to discuss and hopefully resolve the present crisis. All village members are encouarged to attend the meetings should they be allowed by the Interim Board.
6. The “elected” HVBOD will continue to function and operate as the governing board of Hotevilla until such time as village elections are held and new members are “elected” to the HVBOD.
The “elected” HVBOD has issued several press releases to the public in the aftermath of the Court’s decision. Copies of the two press releases and the Final Opinion and Order in Hotevilla Village Board of Directors vs. Muriel Scott, et al., Case No. 2014-AP-002 (Jan. 21, 2106) can be obtained from any of the following members of the HVBOD: Tyler Tawahongva, president of the HVBOD, or Eric Tewa and Cheryl Tenakhongva, members of the HVBOD.

Tyler Tawahongva
President
Hotevilla Village Board of Directors
Hotevilla Village, Ariz.

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