PALIKIR, Pohnpei—The 22nd Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), in a demonstration of exemplary leadership, has both met—and exceeded—His Excellency David W. Panuelo’s request to appropriate an additional two million dollars ($2,000,000) of locally-generated revenue to augment the otherwise Asian Development Bank-funded FSM Low-Income Household Assistance Program. Through the virtuous generosity of the FSM Congress via Congressional Act 22-38, an additional two and a half million dollars ($2,500,000) will augment the program. The practical effect is that an additional 2,500 low-income households will directly benefit from this financial assistance package.
“I extend my sincerest appreciation to the Honorable Wesley W. Simina, Speaker of the 22nd FSM Congress, and all the Honorable Senators, for this action,” President Panuelo said in a statement. “By feeling the pain of generosity in appropriating our own local revenues to support donor-funded programming, we have signaled to our own citizens that their Government is explicitly concerned about their collective wellbeing. Additionally, this generous action also signals to our friends, allies, and development partners that when we say that we extend peace, friendship, cooperation, and love in our common humanity to all peoples and nations, that it most certainly extends to our own people, including those who are the most vulnerable and the most in need.”
