Shelly, Jim take oath of office

WINDOW ROCK

Surrounded by friends, family and staff members, Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly and Navajo Vice-President Rex Lee Jim took the oath of office for the second time in a brief ceremony held in the stateroom in the president’s office.

The small room was packed as Navajo Chief Justice Herb Yazzie administered the oath of office.

“I, Ben Shelly, do solemnly swear to uphold and abide by the laws of the Navajo Nation and the Treaty of 1868 between the Navajo Nation and the United States of America and will faithfully execute the office of Navajo Nation president and will, to the best of my ability to continue to preserve, protect and defend the laws of the Navajo Nation and government of the Navajo Nation and advance the interests of the Navajo people having due regard for the ethical duties and responsibilities of the office, so help me God.”

After both tribal leaders took the oath, they stood and shook hands, something that has not been seen within the tribal government for some 16 years as past presidents and vice-presidents have ended their terms barely speaking to each other.

Shelly and Jim spent the next 10 minutes shaking hands and accepting the well wishes of those who witnessed the ceremony, one that stands as a one-of-a-kind event in the history of the nation.

Neither Shelly nor Jim were re-elected to office. They both owe the continuation of their service to the Navajo Nation to the current chaotic state of the tribal election where factions within the government are still fighting in court over when an election will be held to select a new president and vice-president.

The council, in a resolution approved on Dec. 30 and signed into law on Saturday is calling for a new primary, open to all 17 who ran in the previous primary and anyone else who wants to file, in June and a general election in August.

But that scenario is being challenged in the Navajo Supreme Court in an effort to get the election held by January 31 with only Joe Shirley Jr. and Russell Begaye as the candidates.

For that reason, just how long Shelly and Jim will be continuing as president and vice-president is up in the air.

Shelly said after the ceremony that as long as they serve, it will be “business as usual.”

He said he will continue to operate as he has in the past, signing laws passed by the council and vetoing some of them.

“I’m not going to hold anything back,” he said.

Most of his appointees to various divisions and programs are expected to continue in office, although Shelly said they had only given him a commitment of four years.

He said if anyone on his staff does decide to leave, he wants to appoint someone young to give them a chance to get some experience in working for the tribe.

After losing the primary in August, Shelly has been thinking about what he wants to do when he finally does step down as president.

“Business,” he said. Before going into politics, both in McKinley County and for the tribe, Shelly operated a business in Thoreau where he serviced private and government vehicles.

He pointed out that his years as county commissioner, tribal council delegate, vice-president and then president, didn’t bring him a lot of money and he needs to go out now and make a living for his family.

He hasn’t totally shut the door on future service in some kind of political job but he stressed that he doesn’t plan to look back and any political future will center around a position in either the state or federal government.

He said there is even a chance of changing his residency and going after a Congressional seat.

As for Jim, he was also asked what he plans to do after leaving office and he would only say that that this was “private.”

Shelly will have a little time before he has to make a decision because after serving in the council and as vice-president and president. Shelly, upon leaving office, will be receiving a hefty deferred compensation payment.

How much that will be is hard to determine because the deferred comp funds are invested and that is affected by the ups and downs of the stock market and the economy. The tribe itself does not make public how much each person in the program receives.

The tribe deposited a sum equal to 20 percent of his salary in his account over the years. With his years of service it’s likely to be more than $100,000.

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