Aponte Hernández: Bill that would repeal congressional delegation won’t become law

By THE STAR STAFF

Rep. José Aponte Hernández assured Senate President José Luis Dalmau Santiago on Monday that House Bill 139, which eliminates the congressional “shadow” delegation that was empowered through legislation to push for Puerto Rico statehood in Washington, D.C., will not become law.

“The Senate president can say ‘go home’ in relation to the members of the congressional delegation who are working to enforce the public policy established by the people of Puerto Rico, which is based on the electoral mandate in favor of seeking statehood, according to the results of the status consultation where almost 53 percent of voters favored statehood,” Aponte Hernández said. “Law 167-2020 establishes the mechanisms used in the Tennessee Plan, since the 19th century, by numerous territories to achieve statehood, including Alaska, California, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Tennessee and Oregon. They implemented it to enforce the will of the voter, expressed freely and democratically at the polls, just like what has happened in Puerto Rico. That is why we are using it.”

“The attack against this law, this proven mechanism, is a totally partisan political one, driven by fear that the admission of Puerto Rico as a state will soon materialize,” the at-large New Progressive Party lawmaker added. “It is only a matter of time. The mandate of the people of Puerto Rico, expressed freely and democratically, must be fulfilled, and the vast majority of the members of the congressional delegation are part of the public administration’s effort to do so.”