Tenorio, an Independent mayoral candidate for Saipan, said he still respects the governor even if he wasn’t given a graceful exit.
“When I got replaced, my respect for the governor remains. I will not belittle him or anything,” he told the Variety.
He said his decision to run for mayor has nothing to do with his falling out with the Fitial administration.
“I decided to do this four years ago. It takes somebody, a special breed of people [to overcome our challenges]. I know myself. I know my capabilities. I will do whatever it takes to change the course of the CNMI,” said Tenorio whose father, Pedro Arriola Tenorio, served as village commissioner of Chalan Kanoa District II.
If he’s elected mayor of Saipan, Lino Tenorio said one of his top priorities will be peace and order in the local community.
As a former police officer, Tenorio helped found the first Domestic Violence Unit in the CNMI and the Tourism Oriented Policing Service project.
He worked for DPS for 20 years and rose from the ranks.
He retired as deputy commissioner for operations of the Department of Public Safety in 1998.
In late 2006, he was appointed corrections commissioner and he was confirmed by the Senate in early 2007.
