CARLA N. Camacho was sworn in by Gov. Ralph DLG Torres on Tuesday to serve on the Marianas Public Land Trust board representing the third senatorial district, Saipan and the Northern Islands.
Carla N. Camacho is sworn in by Gov. Ralph DLG Torres in the governor’s conference room on Tuesday.
Camacho was confirmed by a Senate vote of 8-0 on Tuesday prior to her swearing in.
Sen. Francisco Q. Cruz, who chairs the Senate Committee on Executive Appointments and Government Investigations which recommended the confirmation of Camacho, was excused from the Senate session.
Presenting the committee report was the committee vice chair, Sen. Victor B. Hocog.
Comprised of Senators Cruz, Hocog, Karl King-Nabors, Senate Floor Leader Vinnie F. Sablan, and Senate Vice President Justo S. Quitugua, the committee found that Camacho fulfills the necessary requirements and exhibits the necessary experience to assume this role as an MPLT board member.
Factored into their recommendation of Camacho’s appointment were various testimonies expressing support for the appointee.
Prior to the Senate vote, minority bloc Sen. Edith Deleon Guerrero raised concerns about the use of funds intended for individuals of Northern Marianas Descent, or NMDs.
“I am very concerned about locking the funds of MPLT,” she said. “It seems like we will never fulfill the true mandate and the desire of our people to start realizing the benefits of the Trust itself.”
She told Camacho to “please look into this and find another way of not having all the capital of MPLT transferred to the general fund at this juncture, as we speak, so that there’s another way that the central government can generate its own revenue to pay for its own needs, rather than tapping into the NMD funds, because if it would continue to go down this path, we will never be able to truly realize the true benefits intended for the NMDs.”
Senator Hocog said he agrees with Deleon Guerrero, adding that the matter was raised during the public hearing that the committee conducted for the nominee.
MPLT is responsible for prudently investing the principal received from the Department of Public Lands, which collects public land revenues, for the benefit of the trust’s beneficiaries.
The Trust is divided into two parts: the General Trust Fund and the Park Trust Fund. The net investment revenue is distributed annually to the general revenue fund.
