Shirley to Dayish: Butt out
President orders his VP to quit interfering in Desert Rock affair

By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. has directed Vice President Frank Dayish Jr. to "curtail any and all efforts to intervene" in the Desert Rock resistance movement.

"By the authority vested in me as President of the Navajo Nation and pursuant to 1 N.N.C. (Section) 203(C) and 2 N.N.C. (Section) 1005(B), I write to inform you that I am personally addressing matters related to the Desert Rock Energy Project situation.

"I am working closely with the Navajo Department of Justice and representatives of Din Power Authority," Shirley said in a Dec. 19 memorandum to Dayish and copied to Attorney General Louis Denetsosie.

"To avoid conflicting and inconsistent messages from the Office of the President/Vice President, I hereby direct that you curtail any and all efforts to intervene on this matter," Shirley told Dayish.

Citing Section 1005(D), Shirley said that only in the absence of the President shall the Vice President exercise the powers and execute the duties of the President and the Navajo Nation.

"Because I am personally addressing this issue, your intervention on this matter is unnecessary and contrary to the laws of the Navajo Nation."

Shirley spent two-and-a-half hours Monday at the Desert Rock base camp listening to resisters' concerns and trying to explain the Navajo Nation's position in support of the now-$3 billion project.

The president said the Desert Rock project has been discussed for years and was supported by the Navajo Nation Council last summer with a 66-7 vote to grant a lease and sub-lease.

The project will provide three years of temporary construction jobs for an estimated 1,000 Navajo construction workers.

"I will continue to work on this to try to help my people. I have a heart for my people," Shirley said.

Dayish backers
Following the Dec. 18 meeting, Elouise Brown, president of the Dooda Desert Rock Committee, faxed a letter Dec. 21 to Steven Begay, general manager of Din Power Authority, asking that Dayish be allowed to remain the DPA liaison to work with the committee.

"Our elders are respectfully requesting that Vice President Frank Dayish be appointed the Din Power Authority liaison to work with the Dooda Desert Rock Committee on behalf of DPA board and staff," Brown said.

"We realize that Mr. Dayish's term as Vice President of the Navajo Nation will end in a few weeks, but since he is from this area and is still an elected official, we prefer to work with him at this time and until further notice.

"We request DPA assign Mr. Dayish to work with us and have him assigned to this position indefinitely, and that could go beyond Jan 9 (the day after inauguration)."

Brown thanked Begay on behalf of the Din elders "who are exercising their freedom of speech and their rights in this free country to stand up for what they think and feel is the right thing to do."

The Northern Navajo Agency met Friday morning before the council special session to discuss the Desert Rock resistance movement and forced relocation of resisters' base camp by Navajo Nation Police.

Poorly handled
Upper Fruitland Delegate LoRenzo Bates, who is a member of the Northern Agency, said Friday, "My first and foremost concern is the fact that the Navajo Nation took the action that it did. As far as I'm concerned, it was not entirely necessary in the manner that they handled it.

"I understand that the president was out there and he basically said that because the council approved this, their concerns were of no importance. That's the perception I got from his address to the people out there."

Bates said two things really disturbed him. "One is, yes, the council did pass. Right now, the way he's passing it on to the people, the blame is now on the council for what's going on out there ... because the council approved it, it's going forward.

"But the President has got to realize, he also has some responsibility. He signed the legislation.

"So if we're going to point fingers at who did what, then he's got to stand up and take some responsibility for his actions," Bate said. "I take issue with the statements that are being made toward the 20th Council on their actions."

Bates second concern, he said, is "folks have to remember that that coal that is underground is going to be mined, no matter what. Whether it's to DPA/Sithe, APS or XYZ coal company, it's going to get mined because BHP has a lease on that area."

"Their interest is in just selling that coal to whoever."

Bates said people also need to remember that the primary purpose of the proposed power plant was to create jobs, and for the Navajo Nation to own a percentage of the power plant.

"I am still of the position that 25 percent still is not near enough," he said.

Thursday's relocation could have been handled in a more diplomatic manner, on both sides, Bates said. "The folks out there have a right to do what they're doing. The Nation has a responsibility to its own people.

"I told Sithe when they came to my committee (Ethics & Rules), that if things were not handled accordingly, in a diplomatic manner, that when itgets into the arena of the environmental folks, they have more money, more power."

He said Sithe has crossed that line at this point. "Right now, with what has happened, it would not surprise me one bit if all those special interest groups will come in and support what is going on."

He said all parties need to sit down, talk it out, and get those issues resolved, rather than what's taking place now.

"If it had gotten any worse than what did happen out there, it would look like a Third World tactic. Fortunately for all parties, it didn't get to that point," Bates said.