Department of Public Safety Commissioner Anthony Macaranas, center, and Assistant Police Chief Joe Saures field questions from House members during a meeting in the House chamber on Wednesday.
VICE Speaker Joel Camacho on Wednesday urged the Department of Public Safety to look into the growing methamphetamine issue in the northern part of Saipan.
“Have you ever gone to the north? Because we seem to have a really nasty methamphetamine problem up north,” Camacho told DPS Commissioner Anthony I. Macaranas.
The DPS chief and Assistant Chief of Police Joe Saures were invited by the House Ways and Means Committee chair, Rep. Ralph N. Yumul, to a meeting with House members to discuss the nuisance caused by vagrants, especially in the Garapan tourist district.
Camacho said the meth issue in the north was brought to his attention by one of his constituents. He asked Macaranas if DPS’ drug enforcement task force is still conducting undercover operations.
Macaranas said the task force combined with federal operatives and are still conducting operations on island.
Camacho, who represents Precinct 4, said one of every five persons he encounters there exhibits symptoms of meth abuse. “You can tell,” he added.
He said he had brought it up with the previous DPS commissioner who promised that DPS would look into it, but Camacho said “it’s still a huge problem up north.”
Macaranas said the meth problem is one of the reasons he activated a police station in San Roque. DPS is also trying to address the complaints of cattle ranchers in Marpi whose cows have been slaughtered on their property.
The Crime Against Tourist Section, which Macaranas formed recently, will also protect tourists who are sightseeing in Marpi.
For his part, Precinct 5 Rep. Thomas John Manglona said they should pass legislation imposing harsher penalties for drug dealing.
“I think we should let the community know that we don’t mess around when it comes to drug use,” he added.
Not enough money
Rep. Vincent S. Aldan of Precinct 1 said, “I think the only problem these guys [at DPS] have is the lack of resources. There are not enough people, there’s not enough of this, there’s not enough of that.”
Because there’s not enough money in the government coffers to satisfy everybody’s needs, Aldan stressed the need to get rid of government agencies or offices that are not necessary or are “overflowing” with personnel.
He said it is unacceptable to just say “sorry, we don’t have … [financial] resources” when “I am pretty sure the government can chop the workforce down to be able to provide you [DPS] with what you need. Well, not all of it but maybe some.”
Aldan said DPS, a critical frontline agency, is getting shortchanged.
“We can talk about all the Kobans [police stations] and drug-dealing issues … but at the end of the day, when you got a corrupt government that spends money like it’s nobody’s business, and provides crappy services to the public and misappropriates funds, you are not going to get that funding. And that is a fact,” Aldan said.
“We need to stop kidding ourselves. If you got a lot of these government agencies that are not frontline and do not need to be there, it needs to stop. That’s it,” Aldan said.
DPS, he added, “is one of the most neglected government agencies or departments, and I’m sorry to say that. But if there’s anything that I can do to help, I’ll do it. I’m willing to cut a lot of government jobs that are not critical. The government is just wasting money. I’m sorry to say that.”
