By Emmanuel T. Erediano
Variety News Staff

RESIDENTS may submit their applications for PTI’s Lifeline/Link-up program at the Saipan Municipal Council office in Chalan Kanoa starting Monday, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The council said it has concluded a partnership agreement with the CNMI’s only local telecommunication company to help residents gain access to communication technology.
Council Chairwoman Marian DLG. Tudela said residents who have all the required documents no longer need to make an appointment with PTI’s customer service center.
Their applications can be processed on the spot at the council office, she said.
PTI, however, still has to approve the applications. The council also cannot accept payments nor guarantee an immediate discounted rate to applicants.
Tudela said the verification process on eligibility usually takes longer than filling out the application.
An applicant, she added, must be a recipient of a federal assistance program, and must be a head of the household if he or she qualifies for the earned income category.
Tudela said this new service shows that the council is “moving forward in addressing the needs and challenges and expectations of the local communities of Saipan and the Northern Islands.”
She added that providing services to the community has been its “hallmark.”
“We are determined to remain focused and steadfast in our collective resolve in addressing the basic needs and interests of the people in the villages, hamlets, farm sites, and district community,” Tudela said.
She said they intend to work harmoniously with the leadership of Speaker Oscar M. Babauta, Covenant-Saipan, Saipan and Northern Islands legislative delegation chairman Pete P. Reyes, Ind.-Saipan, Saipan Mayor Juan B. Tudela and Northern Islands Mayor Valentine Taisakan.
“We will not despair over institutional difficulties that have beset the council for 20 years now,” Chairwoman Tudela said, referring to their stalled proposal to have lawmaking authority.