Ralph Torres, governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, said he wants Imperial Pacific International to remain in the CNMI if it can “take care of their duties and responsibilities for the Commonwealth, like every other company and industry.” IPI operates the Imperial Palace Casino, which has been closed since March due to Covid-19. Meanwhile the property is undergoing a major expansion that Project Director Jing Zhou said is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.
Observers said local authorities appear to be resisting revoking IPI’s license, even though the company has failed to pay its $15.5 million license fee, or its $20 million mandated contribution to the community benefit fund, already $37 million in arrears.
IPI also has not paid employees for several weeks. However, recently the Commonwealth Casino Commission unanimously voted to allow IPI to move the estimated $690,000 stored in the Imperial Palace Casino cage. The order suspends the CCC’s February 2019 minimum bankroll requirement that $1 million be held in the casino cage at all times. CCC Chairman Edward C. Deleon Guerrero and commissioner Ramon Dela Cruz urged IPI Chief Executive Officer Donald Browne to use those funds to pay casino employees, especially those who have already left the Commonwealth and are back in their own countries. “Pay them off,” Dela Cruz told Browne, adding such a move would demonstrate Browne’s sincerity in taking care of IPI employees.
Deleon Guerra added moving the money out of the casino cage would provide better protection since security at the Imperial Palace is not as strong as it once was, and an unpaid employee who knows the safe combination or has keys to the cage could try to take it.
The CCC also recently suggested a public hearing to gauge IPI’s “financial suitability.” Torres said he would support that idea although no action has yet been taken. Torres stated, “This industry is very critical here in the CNMI. We know the important role they play in our economy and for our retirees’ pension benefits. As for some of their actions and inaction, I’m not happy about those and I’m also very disappointed. But at the same time, I also know what it has brought here to the CNMI and I hope that they can continue to finish their project and address their other issues as a company.”
IPI still may face additional legal proceedings and possibly actions by U.S. federal law enforcement agencies.
Meanwhile, China announced it has created a blacklist of gambling tourism destinations, but Browne said the move has “nothing to do with us.” The Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s list of overseas tourist destinations included casinos it stated were targeting Chinese customers, who could face fines. “Yes, we have gambling but, at this point, it’s a small industry comparatively, and Chinese tourists are relatively minuscule compared to the destinations that may be targeted,” Browne said. Those include South Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, Cambodia, the Philippines and Australia.
Deleon Guerrero said a ban on visitors to the region would have a huge impact on gaming and tourism. But Browne said, “It would be rather presumptuous on our part to assume we would be blacklisted by China. There was already gambling here before. China wouldn’t make the determination to place CNMI on a blacklist just based on these things.” Browne added he felt China’s main concern is overseas money-wiring for gambling purposes.
In other CNMI news, in a 6-1-1 vote, the Senate passed a bill that would legalize and regulate online gambling i on Saipan, Tinian and Rota. Rep. Lorenzo I. Deleon Guerrero, who introduced the bill, said regulated online gambling poses no greater risk to public health than casino gambling, and could provide a new source of revenue for the tourism-based economy.
Senator Paul A. Manglona was the sole no vote, commenting the bill would assist one company, IPI. He said, “How can you control it when you know that the vehicle that you’re going to use is about to fall down a cliff?”
Senator Sixto K. Igisomar pointed out, “There are so many U.S. federal statutes this company must overcome. So before we even worry, if you believe that IPI can qualify for it, they have to jump through the obstacles of the federal government on internet gambling to make sure that they qualify for it.”
The bill was returned to the House of Representatives for a final vote.
