Flashback-January 31, 2000-2002

FLASHBACK

[B][U]January 31, 2000[/U][/B] [B]Legislature’s travel spending up 56 pct. [/B]

Despite the governor’s call for prudence due to the Commonwealth’s chaotic fiscal house, travel expenses by the 11th Legislature jumped by 56.44 percent amid major reduction in overseas trips by the executive and the judicial branches of government. Excluding medical referral, necessary for public health, total government travel was reduced by 46 percent to $2.1 million last year from $3.9 million in 1997. A report from the Department of Finance noted that the Legislature increased its travel spending in 1999 to $704,578 compared with the 1997 level recorded at $454,988. The Senate spent $433,462 in government money for travel during the period under review, while the House of Representatives used up more than $270,000 for its members’ off-island trips last year.

New scholarship program underway

The Senate has taken the initiative in laying down the groundwork for a new scholarship program which will reduce government subsidy while providing incentives to local students who eventually earn a college degree. Legislation proposing the mechanism is expected to be introduced by Senate President Paul A. Manglona when the upper house holds its first regular session within the next few weeks in order to fast-track its implementation. Senate Vice President Thomas P. Villagomez met last week with Dan Nielsen, the governor’s special education consultant, and Hilaria K. Santos, administrator of the Scholarship’s Office, to get update on the draft of the proposal which is being drawn up by the executive branch.

[B][U]January 31, 2001[/U][/B] [B]Business owners air disgust on prostitution in Garapan[/B]

A Department of Public Safety-commissioned survey conducted from September to December 2000 equally top-billed prostitution and public parking as the most prevalent concern in the Western Garapan district. Majority of survey respondents also listed purse snatching, theft, burglary, sewage, trash bins, closed roads, street market, and littering under the tourist commercial district’s 10 most pressing problems. DPS officers Chong Won and Jason Tarkong unveiled results of the study during its monthly Western Garapan Community meeting yesterday which drew the presence of over 25 business proprietors and community members.

[B]Construction sector unlikely to grow[/B]

The construction industry will be flat and slow in the next two years with business leaders keeping a conservative projection on the growth of the Northern Marianas economy due to current financial situations in the mainland US and in Asia. Business analysts pointed out that unless financing problems and certain government policies are threshed out, and concrete efforts are mapped out, the construction sector is not likely to show any significant signs of growth. Contractors have been complaining about the apparently unfriendly business climate in the CNMI, resulting in the closure of several construction companies. This has been aggravated by the slowdown of the tourism sector.

[B][U]January 31, 2002[/U]

Accidental shooting victim dies[/B]

Family and friends of the girl who was accidentally shot on the head Sunday were overcome with grief over the seven-year-old’s death Wednesday afternoon at the local hospital. The child was reportedly unhooked from the life support system at 1:30pm yesterday and finally succumbed to death minutes later. Acting police spokesperson Lt. Pete C. Muña confirmed last night that the child died at exactly 1:34pm. Sources said the victim was clinically dead as early as Monday, resulting from a severe head injury caused by a bullet that was fired from a .22 caliber rifle.

[B]Saipan shoreline eroding[/B]

Saipan’s beaches—stretching from Garapan to San Antonio—have eroded over the past several years, according to Coastal Resources Management Office coordinator Benny Pangelinan. Some portions of the Managaha Island, a popular tourist attraction on Saipan, suffered the same doom. “There is some kind of erosion on the beach from the Quartermaster Road in Garapan to the Pacific Island’s Club in San Antonio going on for the past several years,” Pangelinan said. He said the US Army Corps of Engineers is planning to conduct a study to determine the extent of erosion that has diminished Saipan’s sand beaches.