Madagascar Development

Puerto Rico's governor said Friday that he will go to court to fight a federal control board's call to cut a public pension system by 10 percent, furlough tens of thousands of government workers and eliminate Christmas bonuses. The comments by Gov. Ricardo Rossello come amid rising tensions between his administration and the board created by Congress last year to oversee the finances of a U.S. territory mired in a 10-year  recession . "We will take any steps necessary to protect the people of  Puerto Rico ," Rossello said. He said the board cannot impose those measures unilaterally by July 1 without the consent of his administration. A spokesman for the seven-member board did not respond to a request for comment. The board has proposed furloughs of two days a month for teachers and four days a month for other government workers as a way to cut  government spending  by up to $40 million a month in savings. In addition, all Christmas bonuses could be eliminat

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Carla Minet, executive director of the Center for Investigative Journalism in Puerto Rico, about the election Sunday in which people chose to make their island the 51st U.S. state. Turnout was small, and the referendum is non-binding. ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: Yesterday Puerto Rico held a non-binding referendum on whether to become a U.S. state, and 97 percent of people voted yes. But fewer than 1 in 4 Puerto Ricans actually voted. Opposition parties boycotted it. Carla Minet is executive director of The Center for Investigative Journalism in Puerto Rico. And considering the low turnout, I asked her, how do people in Puerto Rico really feel about statehood? CARLA MINET: As you may know, Puerto Rico is a colony of the United States since 1898. We have an official non-incorporated territorial status. So Puerto Ricans have been in this dilemma for as long as we have lived. Yesterday was just the fifth time we've been consulted about this issue. And t