SAIPAN Mayor Ramon B. Camacho said the lawsuit filed against his office by Construction & Material Supply Inc. will help clarify the limits of public benefit access to quarry materials on Saipan.
“This is a good case,” he said. “They’ve never had this kind of case ever. This is a good case in reference to public benefit. Where do we stand as a community?”
Camacho said he has around 20 days to respond to CMS’ lawsuit, which was filed in Superior Court on Oct. 18.
“I want my attorney to focus on it,” he added.
In the lawsuit, CMS said the Saipan mayor’s office owes $36,126.25 in unpaid quarry fees.
From Feb. 1 to Sept. 11, 2023, the mayor’s office obtained aggregates-3/8 material and base course from CMS’ Kannat Tabla quarry, the lawsuit stated.
It added that the mayor’s office has “failed to pay and continues to fail or refuses to pay CMS….”
Camacho earlier said that based on his reading of the temporary occupancy agreement between CMS and the Department of Public Lands, he does not believe that the mayor’s office should be limited when it comes to obtaining quarry materials for the public benefit, which in this case would be used to repair roads.
He said the agreement does not limit the amount of material that can be taken out of the quarry, and that the 100 cubic yards he is allotted is a figure determined solely by DPL.
“I’m hoping the ruling is in favor of the mayor’s office because if not it’s going to be tough to the people and the community, especially with this financial crisis with the government,” Camacho said.
RB Camacho
