ANNOUNCEMENTS:

From the desk of Rep. Tina Sablan:

This is to announce that Professor Rose Cuison Villazor of Hofstra University Law School will be on island next week, delivering free public presentations on Article XII and U.S. immigration law.

The presentation on "Article XII and Other Blood Quantum Land Laws" is scheduled for Tuesday, July 7, 2009 @ the American Memorial Park Visitors Center from 6pm to 8pm.

The "Basic Family-Based and Employment-Based Immigration Law Workshop" is scheduled for July 8, 2009 @ the Multipurpose Center, from 7:30pm-9pm. Sponsored by the Coalition for the Recognition of Ethnic American Minorities (CREAM), this workshop will provide a general understanding of family-based and employment-based immigration law. Topics that may be covered include immigration petitions based on marriage to a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident; petitions filed by relatives who are U.S. citizens; and sponsorship by employers. The workshop will be designed for a general audience unfamiliar with federal immigration law.

Heinz and Arnold It Is..,

Contrary to the poll we had, the tandem of Heinz and Arnold ruled the Republican Primary held Saturday...

HA - 3,384
JG - 2,984

Now get on with the race...

Kilili Writes to DHS Re Airport Incident

Above is the letter of Rep. Kilili Sablan addressed to the Department of Homeland Security with regard to the reported airport incidents in Guam involving transiting passengers to the CNMI....

Square Foot, Square Deal?

How much does a square foot of a commercial space cost on Saipan?

Do you think a commercial building or a space for local government agency will cost $20 per square foot?

Well, apparently one space that is being occupied by a federally granted program is being rented out for that deal. According to sources this program had to justify to the feds about its expenses specifically the rental space for its operation. In the letter to the feds, the space they require is being rented out to them for $20 per square foot. The feds eventually approved the request.

However, this has posed a question to some about the reality of a rental space fee in the CNMI specially during a recession....

Believe It or Not?

How true is it that the Commonwealth Health Center is not going to receive ER patients for 72 hours due to shortage of ER doctors? The 72 hours is said to give the remaining doctors time to relax and unwind...

Hmmm.....

Up and Away with My Beautiful Ballooooonnnn.....

I believe tis the season of colorful balloons.

Birthdays. Anniversaries. Yes. Parties are best with balloons as decors. Furthermore, the movie Up is now showing at the Hollywood Theater.

The CNMI rides the most expensive balloon as the news today reports that CHC's Dialysis Center project and construction cost has "ballooned" from $5M to $22M. The Legislature will probe further with the issue when a "recent discovery that the Food and Drug Administration certification for the new facility's reverse osmosis water system was forged."

While the public health secretary is away, his reliever has to answer all the inquiries with regard to the matter.

Police, Puhleeease,....

'Heard about the 24 police officers in the CNMI suing the Department of Public Safety?

However, the report says that the current Commissioner is pointing his fingers to the former administration for promoting an officer. He says that there are other officers that have been serving the community for 10 years. He continues saying in his administration he practices fairness et al.

Discriminatory act or not?

Will this affect the the police officers' service to the community, considering that they "could" hold and carry grudges toward DPS?

DC News: Food Stamp Benefits Increase

Saipan, MP – Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan announced today that an increase in food stamp benefits will soon be available for recipients in the NMI.

“I have received word from the Department of Agriculture officials in Washington and in the Western Regional Office of the Food and Nutrition Service that they will be notifying the Governor probably this week that there is another $1.459 million available for the NMI food stamp program.

“I have written to Secretary Vilsack to say thank you. These are difficult times in the Northern Marianas; and families on food stamps need all the help they can get.”

Kilili asked Vilsack for the extra funding in February after passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act did not include the Marianas in a 13.86% across-the-board increase in food stamp benefits nationally.

“The NMI doesn’t participate in the food stamp program by statute, so when the statute was changed we were left out,” said Sablan.
Sablan lobbied Vilsack to correct the oversight; and the Secretary agreed to reprogram $1.459 million to give the Northern Marianas the same 13.86% increase as the rest of the country.

Vilsack also agreed to keep the Northern Marianas at par in the event of future changes in the benefit amount. In a May 8 letter to House and Senate appropriations subcommittee chairs Vilsack wrote that “[f]uture funding increases for CNMI will be aligned with [American Samoa] and [Puerto Rico].”

Sablan said that the local government will still be required to submit a budget for expenditure of the new money for approval by the Western Regional Office in order to begin drawing down the money. He said he had written the Governor to give him a heads up on this requirement.

“My hope is that the Governor will budget the full $1.459 million for benefits and not remove anything for administrative costs,” Kilili said.

“Food stamp recipients in the Northern Marianas deserve the same 13.86% increases as food stamp recipients everywhere in the U.S.”
The CNMI was scheduled to receive $10.7 million from the food stamp program in FY09. Because of Kilili’s efforts the CNMI will now get $12.1 million.(PR)

Looking Back Wondering....

...About the installed parking meters in Garapan.
...About the planned flag-carrier of the CNMI.
...About the first call center on the island.
...About the loan-shark and convict that escaped from the hospital some years ago.
...About the murder of a Korean landlord back in 2005.
...About the planned hyperbaric chamber for CHC.
...About the pending animal pound on Saipan.
...About Paseo De Marianas' multimillion dollar uplift.
...About SaipanSucks.Com.

Should Run or Rant

This is to post a question to the NMI residents. Do you think Rep. Tina Sablan should still run for office i.e. run for a second term?

Through the grapevine, the legislator's party is trying to convince Rep. Sablan to consider a second term that she has done a tremendous job so far. What do you think?

Has she gone tired of the challenges e.g. the alleged detractors up in the Legislature? Has she realized that she's been depriving herself the joy of youth in this world?

I once heard again through the juiciest grapevine that public officials encourage some community members not to take the vocal and youthful representative seriously. Some consider her the young Rep. Stanley T. who has been a "critic" or a watchful eye in the local government. However, some envision Rep. Sablan to be the next governor of the CNMI.

What could make the young legislator back down if not back out of the complexities to run a Commonwealth, if not a nation?

Lastly, is it Angelo Villagomez' turn to shine in politics?