THE CNMI needs a casino industry that complements “our main bread and butter — tourism,” Commonwealth Casino Commission Chairman Edward C. Deleon Guerrero said during the CCC’s monthly meeting on Thursday last week.
“It is my personal opinion that casino gaming is not an independent industry operating in a vacuum,” he added.
He noted that part of the casino license agreement is a requirement to build an integrated resort with tourist-oriented activities.
He said the casino industry can significantly increase business activities and generate revenue so the CNMI government can meet its obligations.
But he also believes that casino regulations need to be “tightened” so the industry can move forward and succeed.
Transition team
For his part, the commission’s executive director, Andrew Yeom reported that the incoming administration’s transition team had visited the CCC office and conducted “full reviews and interviews” from Dec. 9 to 20.
The transition team assigned to the CCC is headed by Joe Rios, and its members are Patrick Sablan and Julie Omar.
Yeom said they briefed the transition team about the history of the CNMI gaming industry, the major issues it is facing including ongoing litigation, the current gaming laws, the license agreement and the commission’s enforcement actions, among other things.
All of the commission’s staffers have met with the transition team “and have done our sincere best to provide as much information so that the transition team can accurately gauge the status of our gaming industry,” Yeom said.
Commonwealth Casino Commission Chairman Edward C. Deleon Guerrero speaks during a meeting in the CCC conference room at Springs Plaza in Gualo Rai on Thursday last week.
