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protest infront of the governor's office

protest infront of the governor's office

THE GOVERNOR RAN AWAY FR THE BACK DOOR.

THE GOVERNOR RAN AWAY FR THE BACK DOOR.

HEADLINE!

STRIBUNE

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Group holds rally, dares Fitial to talk to them
By Agnes E. DonatoReporter


The community group Taotao Tano held a rally outside the administration building yesterday to demand the resignation of Gov. Benigno R. Fitial and all of his appointees.About 15 Taotao Tano members, their children in tow, stood for four hours in front of the Governor's Office, shouting calls for the governor to step down, or at least to come out and speak to them. Fitial and his police escorts reportedly left the building through the back door without addressing the small crowd.“It's very disappointing he had to get four police officers to escort him. We are not a radical group; we even came with kids. We just wanted to talk to him about the CUC [Commonwealth Utilities Corp.] contracts,” said Taotao Tano leader Gregorio Cruz.Taotao Tano has questioned CUC's $5.1 million contract with the Guam-based DCM Group for the repair of Saipan's Power Plant I, and the $885,000 contract with the Commonwealth Industrial Supply Co. Inc. for the repair of Power Plant II. Both companies have failed to complete their work on schedule. The continuing repair at the power plants has prompted CUC to hire the U.K.-based Aggreko International to provide temporary power to Saipan at a cost of $6 million.“Where is the rehabilitation that was supposed to take place? What is the administration going to do with those contracts? Are we going to continue spending money to repair something that should have fixed already?” Cruz asked.“If these officials can't do their job, they don't belong in office. They should step down,” he added.The Saipan Tribune tried to get comments from CUC executive director Tony Muna, but he has not responded at press time. Muna has called the DCM contract “a mistake.” He has also reported that CISCO's work, which was supposed to have been completed in 2006, has been put on hold.It is not clear what CUC's next step will be on DCM or CISCO.Press secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr. Reyes said he knew little about the March 2006 contract with CISCO, which had been given 120 days to fix Power Plant II. But he played down the contractors' faults.“Maybe the engines are in a worse state than they expected. Those engines had been neglected for many years. Unfortunately, the mistakes of the past are coming back to haunt us. We're just trying to deal with the bad circumstances,” he said.Reyes also called Taotao Tano's rally “a publicity stunt.”“They're exercising their right to free speech. That's all right as long as they do it peacefully and they are not disturbing the peace,” he said.

MVARIETY

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Reyes: Governor’s office not affected by protest Tuesday, 08 July 2008 00:00 By Junhan B. Todeno - Variety News Staff

THE leader of Taotao Tano does not “represent the indigenous people” and his protest action that demanded the resignation of Gov. Benigno R. Fitial is “unreasonable,” Press Secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr. said yesterday. A Taotao Tano member holds a placard critical of the administration during their rally outside the governor’s office yesterday. Photo by Mark PeñarandaThe Office of the Governor is “not affected” by the rally spearheaded by Greg Cruz. “We will continue to work,” Reyes said, adding that they have no time to have a dialogue with Cruz. “We talked with him before and we gave him an opportunity to be heard,” Reyes said. “But he has become critical and unreasonable,” he added, when the Fitial administration did not give him a government job. Cruz, in a separate interview, said Reyes should stop acting “as if he is the governor — he only wants a show on island.” Reyes should prove that Taotao Tano does not represent the indigenous people of the CNMI, Cruz said. Their call for Fitial’s resignation is reasonable, he added, and Taotao Tano will continue its protest “until something happens.” Cruz and his group gathered outside the governor’s office on Capital Hill at 1:30 p.m. yesterday. The rally was supposed to start at 10 a.m. Cruz was with eight children, 12 teenagers and seven other adults. The group displayed their banner which stated: “We are all suffering. Fuel is a global issue but ismanagement, incompetence, sweetheart deals, under the table deals is not. If you guys cannot fix CUC step down.” They chanted protest slogans from time to time. The Reyes sisters — Tacia, 16, Estela, 19, and Angie, 18 — said their demand was reasonable “because we have suffered a lot.” Christopher Ayuyu, 33, who has been with Taotao Tano for a year now, said people are paying CUC’s debt and the price of fuel is more than the minimum wage. Aaron Arthur, 15, said the governor is not addressing the pressing problems of the islands. Another local group, the CNMI Descents for Self-Government and Indigenous Rights does not support Taotao Tano’s cause. Former Speaker Oscar C. Rasa, spokesman and adviser of the CNMI Descents, said they are only concerned about issues affecting the rights of the indigenous people. “We are not involved in one way or another with the demand for Fitial’s resignation,” Rasa told Variety, adding that their group now has 2,300 members. Reyes said Cruz enjoyed the support of the local people, but most of them have formed their own groups. “He is inconsistent,” Reyes said. “He might be supporting you in one day and next week attacking you — completely npredictable.” Taotao Tano’s demand for a complete revamp of the cabinet members is also unreasonable because some of those officials are performing well and have nothing to do with Cruz’s problems, Reyes said. Department of Public Safety Commissioner Clyde Norita and Department of Lands and Natural Resources Secretary Dr. Ignacio Dela Cruz are doing well, Reyes said. CUC Executive Director Antonio Muna, he added, is trying to address a difficult situation. Reyes believes that Cruz is being fed information by some politicians or groups that want to express their sentiments but don’t want to be identified. “He is not a very knowledgeable person but sometime when you look at his press releases it sound like it came from somebody who is knowledgeable,” Reyes said. “I have seen his writing and he often has grammatical errors. He’s not a good writer.” Cruz said politicians do not support their group because “they are afraid of us.” He again challenged Reyes to prove that he applied for a job with the Fitial administration.

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OUR CNMI LEADERS activities and accomplishments

Introductory, pending and passage of house bills

Saturday, November 24, 2007

APPRECIATION FROM Rep. Taman

mv-Friday November 16, 2007

Letter to the Editor: Biba Taotao Tano!

GREETINGS to you Mr. Greg Cruz and the members of the Taotao Tano Association. Let me extend my utmost respect and appreciation to you and your fellow members for your passion, conviction and determination to fight for the well-being of our indigenous people. Your effort is a worthy cause that will never go unnoticed. You represent the voice of our people and you guys ought to be commended.
I received a copy of your letter dated Nov. 13 addressed to Rep. Arnold I. Palacios, our minority leader. Your concerns are well noted. But please allow me to make several points.
You claimed in some of your news articles in the past that many of our people are leaving the islands because of the lack of economic opportunities and the exorbitant cost of utilities in particular. I want you to know that we are very much cognizant of this matter and that we wholeheartedly agree with you. The minority bloc constantly sit down brainstorming and even asking our souls for guidance and direction to find some solution to this dilemma.
Mr. Cruz, the soaring cost of fossil fuel is global in nature and is beyond our control. Our inability to generate much needed revenue is dictated by the closure of some garment factories and the deteriorating condition of our tourism industry. This is just to name a few. The issue at hand is much too complex which requires understanding, harmony and compassion between our government, private sector and the community.
Because of the lack of revenue infused into our coffers, we have to search for some relief measures to prevent our people from continuing to leave the island.
Let me bring you back to Nov. 24, 2006 when we in the minority bloc introduced House Bill 15-193 which was passed by the House. The Senate subsequently killed the bill. This was one of the relief measures we have designed. I believe the Taotao Tano Association had not come into being when this bill was first introduced and passed by the House.
But because of the need for relief in our suffering community, on April 4, 2007, the minority reintroduced the same bill in the form of House Bill 15-246. This time, both houses felt the measure was necessary, and both eventually passed it. The governor vetoed the bill but was subsequently overrode by the Legislature.
Mr. Cruz, I want you to know that our decision to override the veto is based solely on our determination to provide relief to our suffering community. It was not done because of the election or because we are riding on the Taotao Tano bandwagon as you claimed. It was done because we profoundly believed that it was the right thing to do. Yes, when we overrode the veto, we promised to find other source of funding for CUC shortfall. Please note that the minority recently introduced House Bill 15-318. This is an appropriation of $6 million introduced by Rep. Joseph Guerrero to subsidize and hopefully replenish some of CUC short fall. This is just one of the few relief measures we are undertaking.
Mr. Cruz, I want you to know that these economic uncertainties we are faced with require a comprehensive and unified direction from all parties concerned. Please bear with us while we search our souls to find the most sound, workable and beneficial solutions to our problems. We can’t perform miracles, but we can try if you work with us.
With all due respect, please do not be obsessed with the word TRANSPARENCY because we have nothing to hide here. Incidentally, the more you use this word the more you contribute to the glory of those disrespectful outsiders who are very critical of our islands, our people and our government. Mr. Cruz, I humbly invite you to please work with us and not against us. Come sit and share with us your ideas so that together we can start healing this painful episode in our history.
In closing, I would like to commend you and the association for the determination to fight for what you believe is right for our Taotao Tano in general. Keep up the good work. God bless you all and God bless the CNMI.
REP. CANDIDO B. TAMAN
15th House of Representatives
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New law tightens definition of "loitering"

120107 st- Local Saturday, December 01, 2007 By Agnes E. DonatoReporter


A GOOD LAW!!

Gov. Benigno R. Fitial has approved a bill strengthening the law against streetside solicitation of customers in the Commonwealth.The newly enacted law provides a clearer definition of acts of loitering.Under the legislation, attempting more than one time to lure a customer into a commercial transaction, whether legal or illegal, through shouting, calling, or beckoning, is prohibited.Also banned is grabbing or touching of potential customers for commercial gain.A person convicted of loitering may be fined up to $1,000 or sentenced to up to 30 days in prison.Public Law 15-113 was enacted in a bid to clarify two previous statutes against loitering. The Legislature said that P.L. 14-50 and P.L. 14-93 had been ineffective in curbing the aggressive street-side solicitation of tourists and other people in the CNMI.The governor noted the previous laws required that there be “repeated” attempts or acts of loitering, but failed to define “repeated.”“This measure clarifies the language, which in turn will assist law enforcement officers when determining if a person is loitering or attempting to loiter for commercial gain,” Fitial said.