The former 1976 Constitutional Convention member also said he is “very tired of payless paydays” and the Saipan “casino is the solution to this problem.”
The main reason why he supports the establishment of a casino on Saipan is “to avoid further hardship,” he added.
“This hardship has resulted in the delay of rebates, child tax credits and refunds because we are limited in generating revenues,” he said.
He said the duties of the legislative delegations, as stated in Article II: Legislative Branch of the CNMI Constitution, include “enacting or disapproving local legislation.”
The local bill, he added, is defined as a bill that, if enacted, becomes a law pertaining exclusively to matters within one senatorial district, and may include but is not limited to gambling.
Article XXI of the CNMI Constitution states that “gambling is prohibited in the Northern Mariana Islands except as provided by Commonwealth law or established through initiative in the Commonwealth or in any senatorial district.”
According to Atalig, “Commonwealth Law” includes local law, the Constitution, customary law and case law.
He said “Commonwealth Law” is like a Bible which has many “books.”
“We have cockfights, bingo and bato and other types of gambling except casino on Saipan and nobody has challenged these games. It’s totally understood that casino is permissible,” he said.
But Senate President Paul A. Manglona said the 1985 Constitutional Convention withdrew the “local law” language after debating an amendment that included specific language to permit gambling by “commonwealth or local law.”
That Constitutional Convention then passed Article 21 as it is written today, said Manglona who served in that convention.
But Atalig said the phrase “local law” was deleted “simply because it is redundant and to avoid confusion regarding the power of the local delegations.”
The Senate, which is dominated by Rota and Tinian, has vowed to bring legal action once the Saipan delegation passes the controversial casino bill.
