Torres, a pro-administration independent who now aligns himself with his former party, the opposition GOP, said in an interview that the House leadership postponed yesterday’s session at the last minute because only eight members of the leadership, including Reps. Eli D. Cabrera, R-Saipan, and Joseph M. Palacios, R-Saipan, showed up.
Variety learned that Speaker Froilan C. Tenorio, Covenant-Saipan, left the island on Sunday.
The other leadership members who were already in the House chamber when the session was called off were Vice Speaker Felicidad T. Ogumoro, Covenant-Saipan, Rep. Ray S. Basa, Covenant-Saipan, House Floor Leader George N. Camacho, Ind.-Saipan, Rep. Fredrick P. Deleon Guerrero, Ind.-Saipan, Rep. Sylvestre I. Iguel, Covenant-Saipan, and Rep. Edmund S. Villagomez, Covenant-Saipan.
Absent were Saipan Covenant Reps. Raymond D. Palacios and Ralph S. Demapan.
Torres said all the nine minority bloc members were in their respective offices waiting to be called for the session when the postponement was announced at the last minute.
“I was already preparing to go to the chamber,” Torres said.
He said the minority bloc with his support is ready to take over the House leadership.
That’s the plan, he said, but “there has been a change in strategy.”
“We will wait until after Christmas. The strategy is not to make an erratic move,” he said. He didn’t elaborate.
House Minority Leader Diego T. Benavente, R-Saipan, in an interview last week, said he was confident that they would have the support of 11 of the 20 House members to take over the leadership.
“But over the weekend, that kind of changed,” he said, adding that the change in leadership might not happen right away.
Speaker Tenorio, who was in Kobe, Japan yesterday, said in a phone interview he was glad the House leadership postponed the session.
It was acting Speaker Ogumoro who postponed the session until further notice.
