Dear Governor:
Let me start by congratulating you on your election win. I pray that you will have much success in your new role as the leader of our beautiful community. I hope you do not take offense, but I would like to make a few friendly suggestions.
To start with, I hope you will thank Governor Bryan for his leadership of the Virgin Islands over the last eight years. Having worked closely with several governors and having academically studied and written about governors, I have direct and personal knowledge that working as an executive in the public sector, especially as a governor, is a thankless job that is constantly being undermined by wild rumors, innuendos, conspiracy theories and political envy. Anyone willing to assume such a public role, instead of just sitting on the sidelines, deserves praise. When we look at four key areas: Covid-19 leadership, the government retirement system, the stabilization of WAPA and tax refunds; regardless of the constant online editorial comments, Governor Bryan’s leadership and success cannot factually be denied in those areas. This is especially true, since the issues in those areas were not of his making. So please publicly wish him well.
There are, however, a few things that the former Governor did that I urge you not to follow. To start with, be honest about the profoundly serious fiscal environment. The ongoing budgetary crisis at the hospitals, waste management operational fees, vendor payments, human resource needs and the shifting federal landscape; all point to the urgent need for a very public discussion about the V.I. Government’s financial fitness. We Virgin Islanders are pragmatic, so if you are upfront about money issues and develop a plan, in general, the community will understand that not every constituent wish will be granted.
That leads to the next point, do not try and be everything to everyone. Set clearly defined priorities that everyone understands and stick to those priorities. If you try and be everything to everyone, many things will not get done and people will blame you for things you promised and did not deliver. If you think I am wrong here, go speak to the horse racing community on St. Croix.
Finally, remember Tip O’Neill’s phase that “all politics is local.” Deal with the basic things that touch our everyday lives. Pave and repair roads quickly, force hospital leaders to address certain reoccurring complaints, address crime issues personally, work to right-size the government to make it efficient before asking for more tax dollars, tell food and gas suppliers the collection of pricing data will be constantly reviewed and addressed for its impact on the community, and of course keep a close eye on WAPA. If you manage these issues well and in a very transparent way, the public in general will be supportive.
Governor, I hope you find these suggestions to be constructive and in no way to be construed as questioning your leadership style or ability.
Again, I wish you all the best.
God Bless.
— Dr. Richard Bachoo has more than 34 years managing large public organizations. Dr. Bachoo graduated from St. Croix Country Day School and earned an MPA and Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut. His research area was Gubernatorial Decision-Making. Dr. Bachoo worked with Connecticut’s governor as the Senior Advisor in the Office of Policy and Management and his experience is not only on the state-wide level, but also on the federal level where he was part of the administrative team at The Naval Undersea Warfare Center. Dr. Bachoo has extensive experience leading and managing higher educational academies, having worked directly for seven different university presidents. He has held various executive positions including CAO, CFO and CIO and he has developed and managed budgets of more than $100 million. Additionally, Dr. Bachoo has managed and led a workforce of over 300.
Keeping promises Dr. Bachoo made to his parents and friends, he returned home to his beloved St. Croix in 2021.
Editor’s Note: Opinion articles do not represent the views of the Virgin Islands Source newsroom and are the sole expressed opinion of the writer. Submissions can be made to visource@gmail.com.
