Over in the Northern Marianas, a servicemember and head of the local veteran’s affairs office on Saipan says enough is enough. StanleyIakopo resigned from his post this week and spoke exclusively with KUAM News, saying NMI Governor Torres does not support veterans.

After four years at the helm of the local V.A. office, Stanley Iakopo tendered his resignation on Monday, writing to CNMI Governor Ralph Torres: “it has become apparent…that we no longer share the same values.”

"This is not his office. This is the veteran’s office," Lakopo asserted. He wrote to the governor: “I cannot in good conscience align myself with a governor who does not support veterans.”

He added, "What broke the camel’s back was for me was I went on a tour and I came back and he disapproved of my military leave. So that was the epitome of my decision. And then on top of that the veterans who are still trying to work towards the services for the veterans and their families. And I feel that he was not able to support our veterans and our families and support me and support my office."

His calls for meetings to discuss issues and brief the governor on federal talks were left unanswered. "I have been asking to meet with him," he noted. Asked if he'd been given an audience over the course of the four years he'd been asking to be seen, Lakopo replied, "I have not seen him. I have not met him for all this time…just five minutes. There are times when I asked; I just need five minutes. I just need ten minutes. I mean, thirty minutes was like asking for the world."

KUAM News spoke with Iakopo at the American Memorial Park, where memorials stand in tribute to the sacrifice of U.S. servicemen. He says the work is a critical mission that he continues to uphold with more than two decades in the U.S. Air Force.

"The last Veterans Day I was here. And in my speech, I spend some time here and I went through all the names," he said. "I look at all the names and that last Veterans Day, I said to myself, 'We do not do enough. These names and their family’s right, we are not doing enough.'"

He wants veterans to know, "Please forgive me if it seemed like I left my post. I did not. I will never leave my post. I do not need to be an executive director…to say I am going to help you," he shared.

Governor Torres has not named his replacement, but KUAM asked the governor about the resignation. "I do not want to go into Stanley's personal issues. I will just leave it at that for now," Torres stated. "All I know is I want to thank him for his service."