By Eric Rosario
Joseph F. Cruz may have opened the floodgates to a public tour of the side of Republican Sen. Telo Taitague's character she hides so well from the cameras and microphones.
The private citizen, who filed an ethics complaint against Taitague for corruption, has been joined by whistleblower Ray Topasna, Jr. The local housing director alleged this afternoon in an ethics complaint against the senator that Taitague, "once again intentionally violated the Standard Operating Procedures for Virtual Public Hearings."
Mr. Topasna says the senator's unethical behavior was on display at a September 28, 2020 Guam Housing and Urban Renewal Authority informational hearing before the Guam Legislature.
"Her actions resulted in the Housing Oversight Chairman Joe San Agustin being forced to mute her from the hearing... [P]ublic hearings should not be used as a venue for Members of the Guam Legislature to launch personal attacks against those testifying." - excerpt from Ray Topasna's ethics complaint against Republican Sen. Telo Taitague
Ms. Taitague used the September hearing to disparage Mr. Topasna and make false claims against him regarding his role as a whistleblower against corruption in the Calvo administration. She made similar claims in a May 19, 2020 virtual confirmation hearing for a member of the GHURA board of commissioners. On June 19, 2020 Mr. Topasna filed an ethics complaint against the senator for her behavior during the May meeting. On July 30 of last year the Legislature's ethics committee responded to the complaint, stating in part, "We reaffirm that all Members and staff employees of I Liheslaturan Guahan shall conduct the person's life, both public and private, so as to bring honor and respect to the person's office in adherence to Rule IX of the Code of Ethics and Standards for the Legislative Branch."
Together with the Cruz complaint, there now have been three ethics complaints filed against the Republican lawmaker in less than a year.
You may view the documents Mr. Topasna submitted below:
