Pacific Magazine > Magazine > January 1, 2002
Government Briefs
Government Briefs
By Aldwin R. Fajardo and Fili Sagapolutele
Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands
GOP gubernatorial team Juan N. Babauta and Diego T. Benavente led the Republican Party to a landslide victory in the November 3 general election. The “BB” team grabbed 42.8 percent of the total votes cast, followed by Covenant Party’s Benigno R. Fitial and Rita H. Inos with 2,963 votes or 24.4 percent. Overall, the BB team got 5,194 votes, which is 2,231 votes higher than what Fitial-Inos received. Democrats Jesse Borja and Brigid Ichihara received 2,117 votes, while the Reform Party’s Froilan S. Tenorio and Dave C. Sablan landed fourth with 1,368 votes out of 12,124 votes cast. GOP candidate Pete A. Tenorio bagged the Washington Representative post with 40.4 percent of the votes. GOP candidates won 16 of the 18 seats in the House of Representatives. The November 3 election generated the lowest turnout in CNMI history, with “only” 78 percent of the total registered voters
actually voting.
Pacific
The European Union’s Pacific representative, Frans Baan, announced a series of substantial aid packages totaling nearly 30 million Euros for agriculture, fisheries, health and land and resource management for Pacific Island countries. Addressing a workshop organized by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) on sustainable agriculture in the Pacific, Baan said Brussels has just approved the current eighth European Development Fund (EDF) main guidelines for the Pacific. - ADVERTISEMENT -
Federated States of Micronesia
The third Constitutional Convention convened in the FSM state of Pohnpei in mid-November. The body elected second FSM President John Haglelgam of Yap as Con-Con President. The Con-Con is set to meet for 30 days. Under the FSM constitution, every 10 years the need for a constitutional review is put to voters. Last year’s poll results called for a convention this year. A total of 14 people representing the four states were elected to the Con-Con.
American Samoa
American Samoa has spent $1.5 million to beef up security in the territory in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S. The territorial government is projecting that it will need $7.5 million annually to maintain the new security measures.
The Governor’s office says of the $7.5 million
annual cost, the government anticipates spending $5.8 million on overtime pay to guard the airport and unspecified “other potential targets.” The government also says it will need about $600,000 annually for security vehicles.
