On Nov. 22, when he introduced himself to Hawaii as the commander of the Navy’s defueling task force, Rear Adm. John Wade stated, without qualification, that “throughout the entire mission, transparency is absolutely critical.”
Apparently, his promise to Hawaii did not apply to disclosing facts about the PFAS contamination, numerous media Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests about the Navy’s Red Hill plans, actions and findings and, now, even how a no-bid half-million- dollar contractor will find out how the people of Hawaii feel about post-defueling uses of the tanks (“Contract for Red Hill alternatives an enigma,” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 27).
It looks like the contractor, Nakupuna Cos., is using the Navy’s FOIA playbook to sink any hopes of transparency, which has effectively kept the public in the dark for too long.
Francis M. Nakamoto
Moanalua Valley
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