Reyes slams Benavente for ‘shaky knees’

Senate Floor leader Pete P. Reyes yesterday accused House Speaker Diego T. Benavente of bowing to federal pressure over his insistence to limit operations of the garment industry in the Northern Marianas in the wake of worsening economic crisis on the island.

“We have to take care of our own problem. They (federal officials) don’t care about us… If we die, they will just watch us,” the senator told reporters in an interview.

Reyes was reacting to a statement from the House speaker warning of federal takeover of local immigration and labor control should the Senate pass a legislation that will cap foreign work force in the garment sector and allow what he considers hiring of 600 additional employees.

Benavente, in a letter to Senate President Paul A. Manglona on Tuesday, cautioned lawmakers that the move would send a “devastating” message to Washington sore over alleged failure by the island government to curb the influx of Asian workers into the NMI.

But Reyes slammed the House leader for considering U.S. concerns on top of the welfare of the local people as the economic slowdown continues to shrink government coffers.

“I hate to keep arguing with people elected in the NMI and who still think they are U.S. congressmen,” he explained. “Forget about what the federal government is thinking… The situation has changed and the government is broke.”

The garment industry, whose gross income topped $800 million in 1997, is the only constant source of revenues for the government when the local tourism sector is faltering on the heels of the economic upheaval in Asia, its main market.

Reyes said although CNMI leaders had pledged to undertake labor and immigration reforms as well as limit the garment operations here in a U.S. Congress oversight hearing last March, the current difficulties call for concrete actions from the government.

He maintained House Bill 11-315 will not open up the local garment business for more abuses since it will control the number of guest workers based on quota assigned to each factory.

The measure, passed overwhelmingly by House members last week despite Benavente’s strong opposition, seeks to cap its labor force at 15,727 guest workers. It heads to the Senate for action.

Reyes said he would urge senators to pass the bill, adding that Benavente’s “federal scare tactics” would not work in the Senate in an apparent jive to the speaker’s statement that the House action was part of the “economic scare tactics.”

“If he is so concerned about reducing the number of garment workers, he should have acted on my bill” that will provide attrition over a period of time, according to the senator.

The Senate passed Reyes’ measure last April, but Benavente referred the bill to a special House committee tasked to review several legislation on garment industry. The panel had recommended passage of HB 11-315 to the speaker’s objection.