Ex-MPLC exec backpedals on Verizon issue

Former Marianas Public Land Corp. executive director William R. Concepcion has made a complete turnaround on the issue of Verizon’s right to use public lands for its buried telephone cables.

Concepcion, who initially supported Micronesian Telecommunications Corp.’s position, retracted and rescinded his Sept. 30, 2005 statement.

“I do not fully recollect all the details regarding this issue. Because of the public controversy that this issue has generated, I believe that this issue should be resolved by MPLA and MTC,” Concepcion said in a letter to attorney Jose S. Dela Cruz, counsel for MTC and its new owner Pacific Telecom Inc.

The letter indicated that MPLA had been furnished a copy.

“I do not recall if I produced any memorandums or correspondences to prove any of my Sept. 30, 2005 statement. Therefore, my statement should not have been used by MTC in a paid advertisement without further verification,” Concepcion added.

The Saipan Tribune tried to reach Verizon general manager Tony Mosley and spokesperson Carlene Tenorio, but they were not available to comment at presstime.

In his earlier statement, Concepcion provided his “recollection” of MPLC’s transactions with Verizon during his term as the agency’s executive director from October 1989 to May 1994.

MPLC is the forerunner of MPLA.

Concepcion said that, during his term, public lands were being leased not just for strict monetary gain but for the “greater impact in inducing the economic growth and enhancing the quality of life of the people.”

He was MPLC executive director when the agency entered into four lease agreements with MTC, which are among the subjects of a pending MPLA suit against the telecom firm.

The leases pertain to public lands in As Gonno, Garapan and Kagman, with each measuring 929-square meter, and a 2,090-square meter lot in Sinapalu, Rota. The MPLA and Verizon executed the lease agreements on the first three properties in 1990, while they agreed on the Sinapalu lease in 1992. All the leases have a term of 25 years and entail an option for Verizon to extend the term for an additional 15 years.

Concepcion said there was an understanding between MTC and the Trust Territory government that the company had the right to use the public right of way to place its buried cables and telephone boxes.

“There was never an issue raised during my 15 years with MPLC by either the staff or the board of directors regarding charging MTC rent or some form of royalty for the use of the public right of way,” Concepcion said. “The improvement and expansion of the telephone system was viewed by the MPLC not as commercial venture but a quasi-public capital improvement project in partnership with the CNMI government.”

“The expansion project significantly improved the reliability and accessibility of telephone service in each of the three islands. The public land rental generated by the switching center leases were a welcome addition to MPLC rental income but the primary source of rental income were the hotel and golf course public land leases,” he added.

In his statement, Concepcion also asked MPLA “not to be blinded by strict monetary gain and overlook the significant role that the good and proper use of public land has in improving and enhancing the quality of life for the population and those of Northern Marianas descent.”

MPLA maintains that Verizon should pay the public agency any surplus resulting from subtracting the minimum annual rental from 3 percent of the gross receipts within 45 days from the end of the quarter, in addition to the guaranteed minimum annual rental.

The agency also says that Verizon failed to secure MPLA’s consent to the assignment of the leases from MTC to PTI, when the latter company acquired the former’s outstanding stocks last Sept. 20.

The MPLA and its board sued MTC and PTI at the Superior Court after negotiations apparently resulted in a deadlock.