Atalig: We only paid straight time

Members of the House Special Committee on Federal Assistance and Disaster Related Funding are joined Tuesday by other lawmakers as they begin their review on documents related to their oversight on awarded contracts, newly-hired employees, and government overtime payments related to the CNMI’s COVID-19 emergency and response. (IVA MAURIN)

The contracts and payments that the Torres administration has incurred for its COVID-19 response efforts are all within the procurement rules and regulations, according to Finance Secretary David Atalig.

“I’m confident that we’ve done our due diligence. I’m confident that we’ve done procurement based on the emergency regulations, and I stand firm that those contracts and payments that we’ve flagged for the COVID-19 mitigation are all within the procurement rules and regulations,” said Atalig in an interview during a radio news briefing yesterday.

Atalig also disclosed that he regularly communicates with Attorney General Edward Manibusan, to ensure that he is aware of the contracts the government is entering into, and be provided with all the facts needed to verify the legality of the procurement of the contracts.

He said that all workers, including Cabinet members, signed a form required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency called a Category B form, in order to get FEMA reimbursement. This form states the reason for working, that the worker is being reassigned to respond directly with the COVID-19, and the hours worked during the operations.

“If that has not gone through review of Homeland Security and Public Assistance, then they will not be compensated. On top of that, the personnel action needs to be processed and approved by the CNMI Office of Personnel Management…in order for us at Finance to make any payments,” he added.

Atalkig said that Cabinet members and some directors were paid additional time. “They were paid additional time. In terms of their pay during the COVID-19, they were paid 1 to 1. No Cabinet members received the 1.5, or as people are alluding to at times, with how things were done at during Super Typhoon Yutu, 2.5. So nothing was paid. We only paid straight time, and most of the time, it’s straight time after they worked over 80 hours,” he said.

Atalig said he himself submitted his hours worked for COVID-19, but stressed that he has not received any overtime pay from those hours.

This comes as an ad hoc committee of the House of Representatives, called the House Special Committee on Federal Assistance and Disaster Related Funding, conduct an oversight on the contracts entered into and payments made, in relation to the CNMI government’s COVID-19 emergency and response operations.