‘Saipan mayor violated law with wrong appointment’

Saipan and Northern Islands Municipal Council chair Ramon B. Camacho said yesterday that Mayor Donald G. Flores knowingly violated a local law that requires him to designate the council chair as acting mayor in his absence.

This is Camacho’s reaction after he received a copy of the memorandum issued by Flores, appointing Council member Ralph Yumul to serve as acting mayor from June 7 to 9.

Flores is in Taebaek City in South Korea to sign a sister city agreement with their local officials.

“There is a local law, and the mayor is clearly not complying with the law,” Camacho told Saipan Tribune in a phone interview.

Camacho refers to Saipan Local Law 17-8, which follows the constitutional requirement that the council chair becomes the acting mayor when the Saipan mayor is physically absent from the island. In the absence of the council chair, then the vice chair becomes acting Saipan mayor.

If the presiding officer of the council is also absent, then the acting Saipan mayor shall be the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation presiding officer.

Camacho said the council was not provided a copy of the memorandum, which he found out through the media.

“The mayor’s action is insulting to the community of Saipan because he clearly violated the law,” he said.

When asked if the mayor holds any grudge against him, Camacho replied, “I don’t want to take it personally. I deal with matters professionally.”

He added, “I’m very willing to have an open forum with the mayor when he comes back from his trip.”

Camacho compared the situation to a simple traffic violation by an ordinary citizen. “If an ordinary citizen failed to stop in a red light, the cops will cite him. In this case, who’s going to cite the mayor for violating a local law? What will happen next?” he asked.

Camacho said he already talked to Vice Speaker Felicidad Ogumoro (Cov-Saipan), who authored the local law. “She’s disappointed. She’ll refer the matter to the speaker. I look forward for them to take action because it’s the lawmakers who voted for the law and the governor signed it.”

The council chair noted that he has nothing against Yumul. “But the law already gave us guidance on who should be the leader in the absence of the mayor,” he added.