By The Star Staff
Elmer Román, who is running for resident commissioner in the upcoming New Progressive Party (NPP) primaries, said Monday that he supports holding a status referendum during the general election as part of efforts to achieve statehood for Puerto Rico.
“Puerto Rico’s main problem is the political inequality that we live with on the island and which has to be addressed urgently,” said Román, who is NPP gubernatorial hopeful Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González Colón’s running mate. “Those who seek to dismiss the issue [by saying] that it is not a ‘priority’ are those who try to perpetuate colonialism, a status that only benefits an elite, who seek to protect their own interests.”
“Achieving the admission of Puerto Rico as a state of the union is definitely one of the main missions that I will have in Congress,” he added. “My track record in the federal government and in the military, particularly in the Pentagon, gives me a unique advantage that no other candidate can match …”
Among the tools available for advancing the cause of statehood, Román said, is the call for a status consultation, “which we believe must be carried out concurrently with the general elections in November.”
“That is the way forward to continue to exert pressure on Congress,” he said.
“That consultation should use as a model H.R. 2757, a measure promoted by the resident commissioner and approved bipartisanly in Congress, which creates a vote between the options of statehood, direct independence, and independence through free association,” the candidate continued. “Members of Congress have already approved this measure, so there can be no excuse that the result will not be endorsed once it is done. Every time I meet with members of Congress, they recognize the need to end over 125 years of colonial rule under the United States.”