Military buildup task force agrees to share concerns with OEA

The Legislature’s civilian military task force has reached an agreement to share its concerns with the Office of Economic Adjustment regarding the planned military buildup in Guam.

Senate President Pete P. Reyes told [I]Saipan Tribune[/I] that members of the task force recently met with a representative of the Office of Economic Adjustment at the office of House Speaker Arnold Palacios.

“We had an agreement that we will continue to meet. We will continue to air our concerns, any concerns that we have we are going to share with the Office of the Economic Adjustment because they can be a facilitator with the military,” Reyes said.

The Senate president underscored the importance of working with the OEA to wrangle out a middle ground so that the presence of the U.S. military is going to be both an advantage for the military and an advantage to the CNMI.

“So it is going to be a win-win situation for the CNMI,” he added.

The House and the Senate recently adopted a joint resolution to create the civilian military task force that will conduct “dialogues with representatives of the U.S. Armed Forces to ensure that the Commonwealth is informed of all matters related to the military expansion in the Marianas.”

Senators Paul A. Manglona, Maria Frica Pangelinan and Joseph M. Mendiola are representing the Senate in the task force. Reps. Diego T. Benavente, Edwin P. Aldan, and David Apatang are assigned to work with the Senate task force members.

Reyes said the task force is intended to work with the U.S. military, the Interior Department, the Executive Branch, the Legislature, and the business community to try and coordinate efforts so that any type of impact that the military buildup in Guam and the ripple effects that it will have on the CNMI can be worked out so that its presence is going to be a benefit to the CNMI rather than a burden.

Reyes said they asked the OEA to be a part of the task force so it can assist with anything that they would work on based on the office’s experience in the past and in other jurisdictions outside of the CNMI.

“Any working model or format that they have can be shared with us so that, if that is necessary to do the same thing, then we may have to do so,” the senator said.

Gov. Benigno Fitial formed a military task force in February 2007 to address the planned U.S. military buildup in the region.

The military buildup in Guam involves the transfer of some 8,000 Marines and their dependents from Okinawa. The program involves using Tinian and possibly Pagan and other parts of the Northern Islands as a military training site.