Gov. Eloy S. Inos withdrew yesterday afternoon his three nominations to the regulatory Casino Commission, on the eve of today\u2019s Senate vote on a controversial bill that seeks to fix ambiguities in the Saipan casino law.
\nThe governor withdrew his nominations of former senator Maria Frica T. Pangelinan, businessman David C. Sablan, and former Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. chief executive officer Alvaro A. Santos.
\nPress secretary Angel Demapan, when sought for comment, said two of the three nominees\u2014Pangelinan and Santos\u2014declined their appointment to the commission.
\nThe Casino Commission is supposed to come up with regulations and regulate the casino industry, among other things. A separate body, the Lottery Commission, has only two functions: to review the casino applications and decide whether to award an exclusive license or not and to whom.
\nRep. Ray Tebuteb (Ind-Saipan), chairman of the 21-member Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation, said yesterday it\u2019s the administration\u2019s \u201cprerogative\u201d to withdraw or recall its nominations.
\n\u201cThe ad-hoc committee is more than 60 percent done with the nominations\u2019 review,\u201d Tebuteb said in a phone interview.
\nTebuteb said the withdrawal may be \u201cin anticipation of the passage of House Bill 18-195\u201d at the Senate, two days after the House passed it by a vote of 15-3.
\nDemapan said the governor withdrew his three nominations \u201cbecause the 90-day expiration is coming up and no hearings have been scheduled yet.\u201d
\nInos sent the nominations to the Saipan delegation on April 17, almost three months ago.
\n\u201cAdditionally, Ms. Pangelinan and Mr. Sablan have regretfully declined their nominations. Governor Inos will submit his nominations anew in the coming days,\u201d Demapan told Saipan Tribune.
\nThe governor\u2019s appointments to the Casino Commission are subject to the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation\u2019s advice and consent.<\/p>\n
Senate vote
\nMeanwhile, all eyes will be on the Senate today as it takes up a House bill repealing and reenacting the Saipan casino law to fix its ambiguities.
\nClyde Norita and Gregorio \u201cKazuma\u201d Camacho are urging retirees and former defined benefit plan members to show up at the Senate at 2pm today to persuade senators to pass HB 18-195, HD1.
\nRetirees believe that the bill\u2019s enactment will pave the way for the award of an exclusive Saipan casino license and the release of $30 million for payments of retirees\u2019 25 percent pension and former defined benefit plan members\u2019 accrued contribution interest.
\nThe governor, in a separate interview yesterday, said he\u2019s pleased with the House\u2019s passage of the bill on Tuesday and hopes that the Senate will also pass the measure.
\n\u201cObviously it shows that the members who dissented previously have changed their minds and hopefully it was a result of, after due deliberation, and showing of support by community members, that they\u2019ve actually changed their mind and now voted for the legislation,\u201d Inos said yesterday.
\nThe original Saipan casino bill passed the Senate by a vote of 5-4 early this year. There\u2019s no telling whether the same voting record will happen in today\u2019s voting on the bill to fix the Saipan casino law anew. <\/p>\n
\u2018Do not pass it\u2019
\nConcerned citizen Glen Hunter, in a letter to senators yesterday, asked them to vote \u201cno\u201d to HB 18-195 and instead allow Saipan voters to \u201cdecide on the future of Saipan.\u201d
\n\u201cThe voters of both Tinian and Rota were afforded this same opportunity in respect to altering our CNM Constitution and allowing casino gaming. While you may believe that passing HB 18-195 is a solution, that is not true and it just compounds the problems. The ends do not justify the means and on a matter as large as changing our CNMI Constitution the voice of the voters needs to be heard,\u201d Hunter said.
\nHunter said HB 18-195\u2019s passage is a \u201csad attempt to pull the wool over the faces of the same people who voted you into office.\u201d
\n\u201cThe \u2018repeal and re-enactment\u2019 trick will negate the referendum signed by over 4,000 voters. Have you ever done such a thing before? Why would you stoop to such tricks now?\u201d Hunter said.
\nInos said he intends to immediately sign HB 18-195 once it reaches his office.<\/p>\n
\u2018Legal mess\u2019
\nWhile HB 18-195 will kill the referendum, the argument that HB 18-195 will side-skirt legal challenges that currently sit in court and stop any other legal challenges \u201cis not accurate,\u201d said Hunter, one of the individuals who sued the government over the Saipan casino law.
\nHe pointed out that the Saipan casino law \u201cis a legal mess.\u201d
\n\u201cAside from currently being the focus of three ongoing court cases, it will still be subject to many more challenges. The most paramount has yet to reach the court system. That legal challenge is whether the Legislature had the right to alter the constitutional ban without a vote from the people. Such a legal challenge will bog down any advancement of the SCA for months or more likely years and will eventually have to be heard in the CNMI Supreme Court. The precedent set by the passage of the SCA has put all CNMI Constitutional provisions in jeopardy,\u201d he added.
\nHe said if Saipan casino gaming is \u201cparamount\u201d in their mind, lawmakers should pass a legislative initiative that asks Saipan voters if they would like to allow casino gaming on Saipan.
\n\u201cIt can be placed on the November ballot and the solution can be seen in just a matter of four short months. This will halt all lawsuits and create a stable environment. This will also send a strong message to the people of Saipan and the rest of the CNMI that their voice matters,\u201d he added.
\nAnother concerned citizen, Leila Staffler, submitted petitions to reject the Saipan casino and electronic gaming laws with over 4,200 signatures on Monday. Once the petition and signatures are validated and certified to have met requirements, the question will be placed before voters in November. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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