50 years ago, our founding fathers had the courage and conviction to sit across a world super power as equals and negotiate one of the most unique political relationships in the history of the United States. After hundreds of years of colonial rule, our people exercised their self-determination in charting a course for a better future, striking a healthy balance between U.S. control of foreign affairs and local autonomy and self-government. In that spirit, they forged a document “based upon the principles of government by the consent of the governed, individual freedom, and democracy.”
As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Covenant, we remember and honor the wisdom and foresight of our founders, we cherish the unique provisions of the Covenant, and we recommit ourselves to the promise at the heart of the Covenant. It is a promise to become full members of the American political family. It is a promise to uphold local self-government. And it is a promise to improve the lives of every single person that calls our islands home.
50 years later, our responsibility is clear: to protect what our founders built and to demand the full measure of its promise. Not partially. Not quietly. Fully.
As your Delegate to Congress, I will fight aggressively and unapologetically for equal treatment as Americans, for the protection of our autonomy, and for federal policies that help bring prosperity to our islands. No more being overlooked. No more being left behind.
Because the promise of the Covenant is not behind us. It is still ahead of us. Together, we can fulfill it — we will fulfill it. And, as your next Delegate in Washington, this is my promise to you: I will fight to fulfill the promise of the Covenant.
Galvin Sablan Deleon Guerrero, Independent Candidate for U.S. Congress
Editor’s note: The views and opinions expressed in this op-ed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of NMI News Service or its staff. All assertions are the sole responsibility of the writer.
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