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Tinian Municipal treasurer rejects TCGCC payroll request
The Tinian Casino Gaming Control Commission and its staff will not be getting paid anytime soon after the Tinian Municipal treasurer rejected the request for payment made by the commission and its staff.
TCGCC executive director Lucia Blanco-Maratita said that Charlene Lizama, treasurer of the Tinian Municipal, returned the documents to the commission attaching only her letter dated June 24, 2015.
“Her rejection of the payroll documents may delay the payment of TCGCC staff’s salaries,” Maratita said.
Lizama in her letter to TCGCC chair Matthew C. Masga, said that he (Masga) and two other TCGCC commissioners—Lydia Barcinas and Bernadita Palacios—have all expired terms and three commission seats are vacant.
“Due to the mayor’s (Tinian Mayor Joey Patrick San Nicolas) declaration, this is notification that compensation for the three board members will be discontinued as of June 24, 2015,” Lizama said.
“In addition any purchase requisition or expenditure by the TCGCC will need to be authorized and signed by either TCGCC commissioner Patrick San Nicolas or commissioner Esther Barr until a new chairman is appointed,” she added.
Maratita said that Masga vows to fight for the staff’s right to be paid.
“Even if it means filing yet another lawsuit against the treasurer (Lizama) and the mayor (Joey Patrick San Nicolas) for wrongfully withholding salaries that had been rightfully earned by the staff,” Maratita said.
According to Masga, the “treasurer’s action is grossly unfair to the staff and is yet another political maneuver which clearly affects the innocent staff.”
Saipan Tribune tried to get comments from Tinian Mayor San Nicolas but he has yet to respond to queries as of press time.
