CMS opposes Saipan Mayor’s Office motion to dismiss suit
Construction & Material Supply Inc. is opposing Saipan Mayor Ramon B. Camacho’s request to dismiss the lawsuit CMS filed against him and the Saipan Mayor’s Office.
CMS, which is suing Camacho in his official capacity as mayor, as well as the Saipan Mayor’s Office, over alleged nonpayment of quarry fees, has filed an opposition to Camacho’s motion for dismissal.
In Camacho’s motion to dismiss the CMS’ suit, his lawyer, Michael Evangelista, argues that Saipan is not a chartered municipality that could be subjected to a lawsuit, hence Camacho cannot be sued for damages in his official capacity.
In its opposition, CMS attorneys Robert T. Tenorio and Oliver M. Manglona argue that the court has jurisdiction over the dispute, regardless whether Saipan is a chartered municipality or not.
“The Saipan municipality has the legal capacity to enter into a contract independently, and cannot bind the central government to its liabilities. In addition, the municipality is a third-party beneficiary only as to the benefits actually consented to by the Department of Public Lands—free raw quarry materials of up to 100 cubic yards in 2023. Defendants received processed quarry materials in excess of 100 cubic yards in 2023, which was beyond and not part of DPL’s consent agreement, and should be liable for breach of contract,” said CMS’ attorneys.
Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho will hear the parties’ arguments on Jan. 30, at 2:30pm.
CMS is suing the Office of the Mayor and Camacho to collect on $36,126.25 that it said represents unpaid material that exceed the community benefit agreement required by its Temporary Occupancy Agreement.
CMS, a quarry operator at the Kannat Tabla quarry, is asking the Superior Court to compel Camacho and the Saipan municipality to pay $36,126.25, along with the legal costs associated with the lawsuit.
CMS explained in their lawsuit that the amount had reached this sum after Camacho and the Saipan Mayor’s Office not only received base course material that exceeded the 100 cubic yards approved by DPL under the public benefit requirement of its permit, but the mayor’s office also ordered 7.5 cubic yards of aggregates—parts of which constituted processed material. These aggregates, CMS said, are not included in the public benefit agreement, and all agencies must pay for this material.
The CMS lawsuit was filed on Oct. 18, 2023, by CMS and their lawyer, Robert Torres.
Mayor Ramon Blas “RB” Camacho
