Saipan Mayor-elect RB Camacho eyes town hall meetings

Saipan Mayor-elect RB Camacho is interviewed at his office at Marianas Printing on Beach Road, where he is the company’s president. (CHRYSTAL MARINO)

As he eases into his new role, Saipan Mayor-elect Ramon “RB” Jose Blas Camacho plans to continue for now with all the operations currently set in place by the sitting mayor, David M. Apatang. Eventually, though, he plans to do a town hall meeting in every precinct on Saipan so he could listen to people directly and hear their concerns.

Speaking at his office at Marianas Printing along Beach Road where he is the company’s president, Camacho said: “…I’m going to continue with the operation, you know, no interruption in the operation…and I’m going schedule myself to do a town hall meeting for every precinct on the island. I want to invite all the community in that particular precinct and I want to meet with them and listen to their issues, concerns, and problems. I want hear it directly from them.”

Among the things he wants to accomplish once he is sworn in as mayor is to endeavor to lower the crime rate through recreational programs. “My job now is to educate the community, how to do prevention instead of apprehension. We need to guide the young generation, to put them on the right path, and not to spend their time in jail. Let’s find something on how to occupy their time.”

Camacho would also like to see more education and advocacy in farming. “I’m a producer, I’m a farmer, and I love farming. Farming is not only what I know, farming is my passion and I grew up in that environment and I believe in farming.”

He believes farming could be part of the tourist experience on Saipan “What we’re thinking is tourism. That’s one industry, but is it moving? It takes time. …Tourists want to see who we are and what we are. They mostly enjoy their vacation on the beaches, how about bringing them in and let’s promote agricultural-tourism?”

This is Camacho’s third run for mayor and he described this third campaign as a journey, and expressed his gratitude to his wife, family and supporters. “I want to make a difference and this is not just for me, but it’s for the community…”

He hopes to show his supporters that he is consistent, which is why he maintained a consistent image and kept the themes and platforms for his campaigns throughout the years. “I’m not new to this program, and this is what I really want to expand upon. And that’s the reason why I ran for mayor three times ‘cause that is what I want to do. Now I can fulfill it. The people have spoken and I thank them so much for their confidence and support in me, giving me this chance.” He said he looks forward to working closely with the community.

In this election, Camacho ran against Joseph Leepan Tenorio Guerrero of the Republican Party and Richard Tudela Lizama of the Democratic Party. Camacho garnered a total of 4,503 votes, Guerrero received 4,184 votes, and Lizama received a total of 3,152 votes.

When asked about getting Apatang’s endorsement, Camacho said that Apatang attended one of his pocket meetings and endorsed him there. “So that’s the beginning of that.”