Past tragedies and natural disasters have prompted individuals with criminal intent to solicit contributions purportedly for a charitable organization and/or a good cause.
Before making a donation of any kind, consumers should adhere to certain guidelines, to include the following:
• Do not respond to any unsolicited (spam) incoming e-mails, including clicking links contained within those messages.
• Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as surviving victims or officials asking for donations via e-mail or social networking sites.
• Verify the legitimacy of nonprofit organizations by utilizing various Internet-based resources that may assist in confirming the group’s existence and its nonprofit status rather than following a purported link to the site.
• Be cautious of e-mails that claim to show pictures of the disaster areas in attached files because the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.
• Make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf to ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes.
• Do not give your personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions: Providing such information may compromise your identity and make you vulnerable to identity theft.
Anyone who has received an e-mail referencing the above information or anyone who may have been a victim of this or a similar incident should notify the IC3 via www.ic3.gov.
New Supreme Court rules in effect
(CNMI Supreme Court) — The new “Northern Mariana Islands Supreme Court Rules” governing appellate procedure before the Supreme Court became effective on Jan. 13 of this year, and litigants have been directed to begin their use as of the 20th.
The new rules were submitted to the Legislature for approval on Nov. 13, 2009.
Neither house of the Legislature disapproved or modified the submission.
The new rules replace the “Rules of Appellate Procedure,” which had been in effect since Dec. 29, 1992.
The new rules can be found on the Law Revision Commission’s Web site (www.cnmilaw.org) under “Legal Documents.”
NMC helps with formation of local aquatic farmers group
(NMC) — Aquatic farmers on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota recently met with aquaculture experts from Northern Marianas College to discuss the formation of a cooperative among aquatic farmers that would help individual local farmers cut costs and increase their exports.
The group of farmers, whose proposed union name is the CNMI Aquaculture Producers Association, or APA, met with Rota and Tinian participants through a conference call in the NMC Cooperative Research Extension and Education Service conference room.
Once formed, the APA aims to centralize the marketing and branding of stock, establish product quality standards (size, weight, color), and the possibly produce feeds on-island.
Several farmers have already been selected for ad hoc committee to create the APA bylaws. These individuals include Saipan’s John Hosono, James Matsumoto, Mel Catalma, Rota’s Nicolas Songsong, and Tinian’s Melvin Crisostomo.
Other topics discussed during the meeting were the concerns facing local aquatic farmers, such as CUC water rates, cost of feed locally, marketing opportunities abroad, and available federal grants.
“All the necessary grants, technology, and expertise are available to aquatic farmers in the CNMI,” said NMC aquaculture extension agent Michael Ogo. “All that was needed was an organization of private citizens to take advantage of these resources.”
Individuals interested in entering the aquaculture industry or gaining membership into the APA should call Michael Ogo at 234-5498 ext. 1728 or e-mail [email protected]
Some of the grants available to farmers in the CNMI include the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Energy for America Program, which will fund energy-saving improvement projects, and the Small, Socially Disadvantaged Producer Grant Program, which will provide funds for technical assistance.
“Given the CNMI’s water resources, tropical environment, and proximity to key markets, we’ve always realized that there are significant economic opportunities for the local aquaculture industry,” said Tee Abraham, NMC dean of Community Programs and Services. “We will continue to support efforts like the APA and other activities to build capacity and expand aquacultural activities in the CNMI.”
CREES’ staff also vowed to continue to support APA members through various trainings and workshops, which will be scheduled during the coming months.
A tilapia management practices workshop has already been scheduled for March 23, 2010. The college will release details about the seminar within the next few weeks.
“As part of our ongoing efforts to build up the aquaculture industry, we will continue to make ourselves and our resources available to assist in any way we can,” Ogo added.
“We are pleased to see that many aquatic farmers are taking the initiative to focus their energies on a collective effort to diminish economical pressures facing the growing aquaculture industry,” said NMC interim President Lorraine T. Cabrera.
Delta adds daily flight to NMI from Narita
(MVA) — Delta Airline has added an additional daytime flight from Narita to Saipan. The additional flight, started on Jan. 1, will bring much needed stability to air lift supply for this island resort destination, according to the Marianas Visitors Authority.
In addition to the new flight to Saipan, each day Delta operates one daytime (182 seats) and one nighttime flight (182 seats) from Narita and one daytime flight (182 seats) from Nagoya, Asiana Airlines also flies to Saipan daily from Osaka.
The additional daytime flight of 160 seats by Delta this month will result in 13 percent more air seats from Japan compared to January 2009.
While the new flight is positive news for Northern Marianas tourism, major travel agents are still expressing caution about fewer group travel bookings and the continuing trend of decreased pricing for packages to the Northern Marianas.
“Stable air lift supply by Delta, Asiana Airlines and Continental is absolutely critical for our tourism partners, which is why MVA is prioritizing airline incentives — to keep flights flying,” said MVA Managing Director Perry Tenorio.
