He said the government is broke and the commonwealth’s future is bleak.
He supports the legalization of casino gaming on Saipan because, he said, “I’m afraid of the worst scenario.”
“I hope (to) God that our life will be good, but I fear for the worst. May God have mercy on us and may God help us all,” he said.
Palacios said there seems to be no other way to boost the local economy.
He said government employees will soon receive their reduction-in-force notice and those who will keep their jobs will get 16-hour pay cuts and unpaid holidays.
The Retirement Fund, he added, is on the verge of collapsing, which will severely affect the lives of 3,000 retirees and 2,000 active employees, Palacios said.
Other revenue generating ideas are being opposed right away, he added, referring to the fee increases approved by the House of the Representatives.
Palacios, who represents Saipan’s Precinct 1, said he voted yes to casino because he also wants poker establishments out of the villages.
The casino operation on Saipan will bring these gambling arcades to one area that is far from schools and residential homes, he said.
Saipan, he added, can still be “a tropical paradise” if a casino opens here.
Republican Reps. Trenton B. Conner of Tinian and Eliceo D. Cabrera of Saipan abstained while the rest of the Republicans in the House voted against the casino bill, which is now pending in the Senate.
