online craps casinos

Saipan Casino Issue Continues

Posted on May 17th, 2011

News Sponsored by Go Casino

Rated 5 Stars by BestCraps.com

Read Review

Visit Casino

Download Software

————————————————

“The Senate can do whatever they want.” Rep. Stanley Torres (Ind-Saipan) welcomed yesterday the threat of Senate President Paul Manglona (Ind-Rota) to challenge his (Torres) authored local bill which pertained to the legalization of casino gambling in Saipan. Manglona labeled Torres’ bill as “unconstitutional” and has relayed his intentions of taking the said controversial local bill to the Senate court if it passes through the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation. Torres and other lawmakers in alliance with the bill said Manglona and the Senate are always welcome to derail the bill on court “whenever they’re ready”. A 21-member Saipan delegation now handles Torres’ Saipan Local Bill 17-44.

Rep. Froilan Tenorio (Cov-Saipan) — another supporter of Torres’ bill, said the Senate would have been saved of the hassle of dealing with this bill if they have approved and passed his Saipan casino’s House bill last year. His bill’s termination has now triggered the House members to consider a local bill. “Let him (Manglona) challenge it. Remember my bill that they [Senate] killed? They ran away to Tinian to kill it because they didn’t have the guts to do it over here. Why are we going through the local law procedure? So we can bypass the Senate,” Tenorio said on Saturday. Manglona countered that allowing gambling in a senatorial district via local law was never on their agenda. “If that’s our intention, then it doesn’t quite make sense because there are only two ways you can legalize casino-either a popular initiative, by the people of the senatorial districts, or by Commonwealth law.,” Manglona said in an interview.

Manglona stated in clarification how a local law can never be mistaken as a Commonwealth law just to find a hole for the gambling legalization to pass through in a senatorial district. “If that’s the case, they can just, for example, take any revenue bill and say ‘we’ll introduce it as a local law, forget the whole legislative body,’” he said. The Senate President added that if this would set a precedent, future investors would not be too quick in investing in the area. This would cause apprehensions to future investors as any investments they might commit would be rendered useless by the courts Both Tenorio and Torres are confident that the local bill has the right count of votes to go past the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation. The bill’s fate would then be up to Governor Benigno Fitial’s hands.

The Fitial administration hinted about its expected support for the bill through a statement released by press secretary Angel Demapan yesterday. “Moreover, the administration supports development that will generate increased revenues so that the government will be able to make timely payments to CUC, the Retirement Fund, and to all vendors who provide the government with much needed goods and services such as pharmaceuticals”. The statement continued by maintaining that support would be freely given provided that it be established that the gambling industry would be the answer to several problems sought to be addressed by the very proposal. Demapan added that questions regarding the constitutionality of the law will be answered sooner or later.

Minority leader Diego Benavente (R-Saipan) and fellow member of the House Rep. Edmund Villagomez have argued that the verdict on whether casino gambling must be legalized in Saipan must be put on the voters’ hands. A move to get the ball rolling on Saipan casino has been turned down twice by Saipan voters, the last of which happened last 2007. Tenorio responded by saying that lawmakers have been chosen by voters to be their voice in the process of legislation. “Why did they run for the Legislature? That’s their job. If they don’t want to make controversial decisions, then quit, get out of the Legislature,” Tenorio bluntly said.

A session involving the delegation is expected this week but the voting for the bill’s approval or disapproval may wait a little longer due to the possibility of the bill undergoing through the Judiciary and Governmental Operations, and Ways and Means committees. Torres added that the hearings of the first ever local bill that aims to legalize casino gambling in a senatorial district would be made available to the public.