Manglona is back at Immigration

Transition committee chair Martin A. Manglona is back to his old position as chief of the CNMI Division of Immigration.

Gov. Benigno R. Fitial has not issued a memorandum regarding Manglona’s appointment although the governor announced it at Friday’s inauguration ceremony for Tinian Mayor Jose P. San Nicolas.

Press secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr. said Manglona would be serving as Immigration director only temporarily. Manglona has held the position in an acting capacity since last week. His appointment does not require Senate confirmation.

In a separate interview, Manglona vowed to organize the Division of Immigration to ensure that permits are processed in an efficient manner. The target, he said, is to get work and tourists permits out in as short a period as 10 hours.

“I want to foster a business-friendly atmosphere. Investors should get 100-percent service because we are public servants,” Manglona said.

He added, however, that although he would like to help the administration, he also wanted the younger generation to get a chance to work in government.

Manglona, 67, served as Immigration director during the Babauta administration but he resigned after two months in office due to differences with former attorney general Pamela S. Brown.

Formerly part of the Department of Labor and Immigration, the Division of Immigration became under the Attorney General’s Office during Babauta’s term.

One of the factors that prompted Manglona’s resignation was Brown’s Dec. 18, 2003, directive requiring that all visitor entry permits be signed by the attorney general before they could be issued.

Manglona had said that Brown’s policy made the VEP process more laborious and complicated, rather than more efficient.

He had also accused Brown of preventing the hiring of 23 full time employees that had already been approved by the Governor’s Office, Office of Personnel Management, and Office of Management and Budget.

Brown had also allegedly curtailed his freedom of speech by not allowing him to speak on behalf of the Immigration Division without first getting Brown’s permission.

Manglona, who retired as Command Sergeant Major of the U.S. Army, was the special assistant for military affairs during the administration of former governor Lorenzo I. Deleon Guerrero in the early 1990s.

He also was the deputy secretary of the Department of Public Works under former governor Froilan C. Tenorio.

As chairman of the Covenant Party, Manglona led the Fitial-Villagomez campaign to victory in the last election.