arianas %riety;;~ Micronesia's Leading Newspaper Since 1972 b&) Cabrera had $112K in reimbursements By Mar-Vic C. Munar showed, had received reimburse­ Variety News Staff ments for computer accessories, BETWEENMarch 1994amlJunc video camera, lady's drinks, per­ 1997, Finance Secretary Antonio fumery. cigars and lighters. and Cabrera was reimbursed a total of meals, among others. $1 i 1,643 for expenses that cov­ An invoice dated Feb.27.1997 ered, among other things, pay­ was issued from Manila's ments for drinks at a nightclub in Ropongg i Karaoke where Cabrera :vtanila, aCL"('r,Jing to documents paid a total of $61.22 for tea and obtained by the Variety. shandy. The documents totaled 32 pages At least 12 Island Garden with photocopies of vouchers, re­ (Garapan nightspot) receipts all ceipts, and checks issued to dated April 12 indicated that Cabrera. Cabrera paid a total of $250 for Cabrera was recently named as Antonio Cabrera beer and other alcoholic drinks. head of the special flat tax com­ Another invoice dated Aug. 13, mittee created by Gov. Froilan C. with amounts ranging from $5 to 1996 reads $378 dinner at an ex­ Tenorio. $20,000. pensive seafood restaurant in Tenorio in a previous interview When reached for comment, Manila. indicated he does not like the prac­ Cabrera justified the reimburse­ Cabrera also got reimbursed for tice of government officials en­ ments but decl incd to go on record. $70 worth of ice cream, and cof­ tertaining guests in nightclubs and He said he wi II issue a statement fee bag from Big Dipper. The similar establishments. as soon as he got a copy of the invoice was dated May 5, 1997. The Office of the Public Audi­ documents. The Variety faxed to On Dec. 6, 1996. Cabrera was tor has been furnished a copy of Cabrera a few pages that summa­ issued a check worth $20.000 rep­ the documents, it was learned. rized his reimbursement records. resenting expenses for a trip to Rappelling course instructor Harry Blanco (left) gives some last mjnute Documents showed that, be­ The secretary, however, did not Manila. tips to Arika Actouka on her first trip down the 60-foot high Ladder tween 1994 and 1995, Cabrera call again as of press time. On Oct. 4 . 1996. Cabrera re­ Beach Cliffs. The course is being offered at NMC. see page 4 was issued a total of 40 checks Cabrera, the documents Continued on page 20 ,Borja says Immigration Cornrnission Eleven-fold increase members vow 'open rnind' on CNMI in water rates 'seen' By Zaldy Dandan members Michael S. Teitelbaum, · By Jojo Dass Mathis. Vanety flews Staff Rohen Charles I !ill and exccu­ Variety News Staff "So, should the Legislature \('TJ'.\(i(1()\,Jesusc·. Borj;1 t i\'l' director Susan Martin on Aug. CONSUMERS may have to decide that supplying watcr24 \L'SlL'Jd;1y llll't \lith t\\() ,Lill shoulder an eleven-fold in­ hours a day is a good thing to lllL'illhl'\, ()r the l '.S. C'rnnmi.s­ The Ulllllllissioners \\'ill meet crease in water rates if the Leg­ do, then it will have to change ,j, 111 (lll lmmigr;1tio11 RL·fm111 11ith local organi1.atio11s and indi- islature fails to amend a law the law so that it can legally \I 110. IJL· s;1id. ga\'L' the assur;111ce 1 iduals. and arc sl'i1eduled Lo re­ that prohibits a subsidy for the give CUC the subsidies for that th;1t the rnmmission ··will keep turn to lhe mainland U.S. on Aug. Commonwealth Utilities water plant." . ;111 ,ipe11 rni11d'" despite the lnte­ 7. Corporation's planned pur­ 'Huge increase or subsidy' ' ri( 1r Dep;1rtment 's highly criti­ Borja said he was told that the chase of potable water from a An average household, by cal report on the C'NMI';,; immi­ commission will look into the desalination facility contractor. government estimates, uses gr;1t ion policies. CNM! 's immigration system. "(Under the law,) everything about 600 gallons of water a The commission staff mem­ C,ov. Froilan C. Tcnorio's will have to be paid for by the day, or 18,000 gallons a month. l>c:rs. l);1vid J,evy and Monic:1 spokesperson Mark Broadhurst customers, not the govern­ This would translate to $9 in l lcppell. arri\'ed Sunday. and has claimed tlwt the commission ment," said CUC PIO Pamela "ill he joi1ll'd hy commission Continued on page 20 Jesus C. Borja Continuecton page 20 US lawmaker raps NMI's 'outrageous abuse' of workers By Zaldy Dandan paid less than the federal mini­ I le urged that existing laws that Variety News Staff mum wage and arc required to allow the CNMI to hire alien A l/NITED States congressman work in facilities that would vio­ workers paid at "substandard'" on Wednesday lashed at the late U.S. labor laws. wages, "and then turn around and CNM!'s "outrageous abuse·· of The Interior Department's re­ label their products ·Made in al icn workers, saying "it's ti me to port, he added, placed the annual USA ... must be changed. enforce our laws and end this fla­ value ofCNMI garment proJucts The resulting trade advantage grant abuse." at $625 million "which comes to the CNMI. he added, ··is so C"itiPg the Interior Dcp;:rtmcnt 's into the U.S. duty and quota.free, great that its apparel imports arc report on the CNMI, U.S. Rep. displacing an estimate of alri1ost increasing at a rate of 30 percent John Spratt (D-South Carolina, 5,000 American jobs in textile, a year.·· 5th District), in a media release, apparel and related industries." Spratt said al icn workers now \i ngled out the "numerous abuses" Spratt, who represents a tJ istrict represent 90 percent of the in local garment factories which that produces cotton for textile workforce in the garment indus­ he labeled as "sweatshops." mills, said the CNMI has been tries, while local U.S. citizens face Spratt said garment workers arc "draining"' U.S textile jobs. Continued on page 20 John Spratt 'PAC NEViSPM~En S"f/\O;s TUESDAY, JULY 29, 1997 -MARIANAS VARIETY NEWS AND VJEWS-3 2-MARIANAS VARIETY NEWS AND VIEWS-TUESDAY-JULY 29, 1997 Blacks back school voucher 47 percent, pro and con. But 57.3 Chinatown 'slay' probed By Robe1t Greene liberal Rep. Floyd Flake, D-N.Y., caucus debated vouchers just this cation is indeed growing. The Joint Center for Political percent of blacks surveyed fa­ WASHINGTON (AP) - A a member of the Congressional past week. By Ferdie de la Torre Responding police officers Studies, which emphasizes stud­ vored vouchers, up from barely 48 growing impatience with _public Black Caucus, talked up the issue "This is a phenomenal step," Variety News Staff AGO files charges in 'killing' of alien worker brought Vil lavilla to the Com­ ies affecting black Americans, percent in January 1996. schools among black Americans is in interviews last week. Flake said. "Ordinarily our pos­ THE ATIORNEY General's Of­ monwealth Health Center where found in polls last March that sup­ Support was largest among the adding new fuel to the congres­ Coats. a longtime suppo11er of ture has been: ·Public schools at fice charged yesterday a man in con­ Villavilla,astevedore, was on board a open the van's front seat door, after Aldan told the court. he was pronounced dead at 8:04 port for vouchers among blacks young and the poor. sional debate over taxpayer sup­ vouchers. is pushing bills to create all costs. Nothing else can ever be nection with the alleged killing of an minibus with three other co-Filipino which pushing ensued as Sedurnnte The operator drove the vehicle p.m. on the same night. considered. We 're not even going has outgrown support among The share of blacks rating their po11 for p1ivatc schools. a program of federally supported alien worker in Chinatown Saturday workers from the Saipan Stevedore took the front passenger's seat occu­ to SSC! bairncks I in Chinatown Meanwhile, Sedurante was ar­ whites. schools as poor rose to 23 percent Nonpa11isan polls have found vouchers in the Distiicl of Colum­ to hear it."' night. Co., Inc. (SSCI)on theirway to jobsite pied by Villavilla, police said. where Villavilla told Sedurante rested and taken to the Depart­ Dissatisfaction in public edu- Whites were evenly divided at Continued on page 6 an incrl'asc of almost 10 poims in bia and another to help poor fami­ Berlin Sedunmte, 38, a Caf!X!nter, at the Charlie Dock. · Sgt.Joseph Aldan said thataccord­ to get down. ment of Public Safety. 18 months in the percentage of lies at unsafe schools. was charged with murder in the sec­ When the minibus stopped at the ing to witnesses, the suspect ordered Sedurante, however, struck the Shortly before yesterday's bail blacks supponing the ,·ouchcrcon­ Flake has been an outspoken ond degree before the SupeiiorCourt. traffic light along Chalan Kiya inter­ theopemtortodiivefasteron the way victim thrice on the lower jaw and hearing, Sec.lurante told the Vari­ cept. which would help the urban supporter. He is pastor or a church According to the complaint filed section, Sedurnnte, who was alleg­ to his (Sedurante) barracks in neck with open palm, Aldan said. ety he was ganged up. He did no! poor finance tuition at pri,·atl' - in Queens that runs a school but by AssisumtAtty.Gen.KevinLynch, edly under the influence of alcohol, Gualo Rai. Villavilla then opened the van's elaborate. c,·cn church-operated~ schoob.