THE two Senate minority bloc members on Thursday blamed the “lack of diligence” for the government’s failure to collect the $400,000 that Luta Mermaid LLC owes the Commonwealth.
Sens. Edith Deleon Guerrero and Paul A. Manglona commented on Gov. Ralph DLG Torres’s decision to veto Senate Local Bill 22-4 which proposed to earmark the uncollected $400,000 for Rota medical referral patients and scholarships.
In his veto message last month, the governor said according to the Department of Finance and the Office of the Attorney General, although the defendants in Luta Mermaid litigation have agreed to pay the settlement amount, “no payment towards the stipulated judgment has been made to the Commonwealth.”
Deleon Guerrero said, “A collection could have been achieved had there been more due diligence taken to monitor the collection of these public funds. But apparently it is quite obvious that no attention was given to the outstanding CNMI public funds receivables.”
According to Manglona, the governor was saying that there is no MV Luta money to fund S.L.B. 22-4, while also stating that the AG has informed the governor that an order to show cause motion will be filed shortly to enforce the settlement terms.
“These statements by the governor are contradictory to each other,” Manglona said.
He added that he will introduce another local bill to appropriate the money that will be collected upon enforcement of the settlement terms.
In March 2015, the Rota delegation adopted then-Senate President Victor B. Hocog’s Rota Legislative Delegation Resolution 19-3, authorizing then-Finance Secretary Larrisa Larson to make “an advance payment” to Luta Mermaid for the fuel, lubrication, and costs necessary for the maiden voyage of MV Luta from Louisiana to Rota, “and to provide for the personnel and operational costs of the Office of the Mayor of Rota.”
In February 2017, the AG’s office sued Luta Mermaid LLC, which owned MV Luta, for receiving $400,000 in public funds without authorization, wrongful retention of public funds, unjust enrichment and using public funds for personal use.
In July 2019, the AG’s office announced that a resolution had been reached in the government’s lawsuit against Luta Mermaid.
According to the consent judgment, Luta Mermaid would repay the government $400,000 in five years.
Edith Deleon Guerrero
