FLASHBACK – Feb. 27, 2012

Feb. 27, 2002

Benavente upbeat on tourism goal

The government’s plan to bump up the expected number of Japanese tourists this year by 100,000 is going to be costly but acting Gov. Diego T. Benavente said it is going to be worth it. Although he did not specify the price tag for the plan, Benavente said the administration is considering all funding options available, even if it has to borrow the money to finance the project. “It is definitely going to cost a bundle but as I said [during last week’s meeting with tourism sector representatives], even if we have to borrow money for something like this, it’s going to be worth the investment. We will look at every area of funding that is necessary but, definitely, whatever we spend on a project like this will be more than worth it,” the acting Governor said.

Court junks AG motion to revive criminal case

Superior Court Associate Judge Juan T. Lizama yesterday ruled against the Attorney General Office’s motion to reinstate court proceedings in the government’s criminal case against Glen D. Palacios. Instead, the judge upheld his previous order to dismiss the domestic abuse case with prejudice. Lizama, in a five-page order, stated that “the court has the discretion to dismiss a criminal matter with prejudice where the Commonwealth is charged with having ’constructive notice’ of the court’s inherent power to dismiss a criminal matter with prejudice.”

Feb. 27, 2004

Worker allowed to leave employer

The Department of Labor Hearing Office has allowed a nonresident worker to leave his employer and seek a new job following a complaint settlement. In a Feb. 23 administrative order, hearing officer Linn Asper granted the complainant, identified only as Shamsul, relief to find new employment within 45 days, and awarded him over $600 in unpaid wages and $225 in unpaid food allowance. Shamsul previously worked as live-in farmer for Amanda B. Manglona on Rota. Records showed that Shamsul worked for Manglona in 1999 and 2000.

FEMA approves more than $1M to acquire flood-prone properties

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced today it has obligated more than $1 million to the Guam Department of Public Works to acquire and demolish three flood prone properties and to flood-retrofit one property. The properties included two residential, one business and one Guam Government-owned building. “This funding will assist home and business owners, as well as Government of Guam owned facilities avoid future flood damage,” said Jeff Griffin, Director of FEMA’s Region IX. Guam was struck last year by two typhoons that caused more than $278 million in damages to the island. These typhoons and other localized flooding causes major damages to buildings to many parts of the island jeopardized lives and created serious losses for many of the businesses in the area.

Feb. 27, 2006

AGO to tighten rules in issuance of IR permits

Revisions will be made on the proposed regulations on “sham marriage,” following a public hearing last week, Attorney General Matthew T. Gregory said Friday. According to Gregory, the sizeable crowd that attended Wednesday evening’s public hearing was supportive of the draft regulations, which would tighten rules governing sponsorships and the issuance of Immediate Relative permits. “The participants in the public hearing agreed that we need to be tougher on marriages and scrutinize marriages (between U.S. citizens and aliens). A lot of the individuals there talked about how they knew of individuals that were engaged in sham marriage. They want to some action,” he said.

DOI offers Junior Statesmen scholarships

The U.S. Department of the Interior is encouraging top high school student leaders, grades 10-11, to apply for one of three full scholarships being offered by DOI to attend a Junior Statesmen Summer School session in the States. The scholarships cover all tuition costs and round trip transportation to the summer school of the students’ choice. Summer school students take exciting college level courses in American Government and Speech, while they develop and polish their leadership skills. Monthlong sessions of the Junior Statesmen Summer School are conducted on the prestigious university campuses of Stanford (near San Francisco), Northwestern (near Chicago), Princeton University (near New York), Yale (near New York), and Georgetown (in Washington, D.C.).