Wartime-Level Northern Marianas Typhoon Hit Tests US Commitment

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And the People's Republic of China has for years been stoking this opposition via a concerted – and successful – political warfare campaign in CNMI. The key theme:“The Americans don't care about you. We, the PRC do care about you, and we'll make you rich.”

The Chinese have spread plenty of money around Saipan's political and business class, including via the Imperial Pacific casino that operated on Saipan from around 2015 until it's collapse. (Its assets have been bought by another company that may have ties to the old one.)

That money bought a lot of influence, and even now CNMI's business lobby is promoting Chinese tourism and investment as the solution to the commonwealth's chronic economic problems – to the point where CNMI is the only place in the US where Chinese can arrive without a visa, leading to Congressional concern about, among other issues, birth tourism.

A word about money...

FEMA's recovery effort will presumably include financial assistance to CNMI. One local who lost everything in last week's typhoon warned that the US government should closely monitor financial assistance provided to the commonwealth government.

Saipan's governor from 2023-2025, the late Arnold Palacios discovered on taking office that over $1 billion in Covid relief and other US government financial assistance lacked proper auditing – including, for example, sanitation services charged at $4,300 an hour. And there are still questions about what happened to some of the funds and equipment after the last major typhoon – Yutu – hit CNMI in 2018.

Palacios repeatedly asked Washington to send investigators and accountants to uncover what happened – and prosecute. He was ignored.

And in the“you can't make it up” category, the official at the US Department of Interior whose brief includes CNMI is Angel Demapan. Demapan was Chief of Staff to Ralph Torres, the then-CNMI governor on whose watch the aforementioned money was, at best, poorly audited.

Demapan also took Chinese casino money to help with his own election campaign. And Torres is running for governor again, posing in front of the planes bringing in supplies as if he were personally responsible for the shipments – and by implication, for the disbursements.

So be careful.

Locals – including the ones who need the help the most, are asking that the funds and supplies come with proper oversight and accountability, including perhaps inspectors general and federal comptrollers.

An opportunity for Japan?

Super Typhoon Sinlaku offers an opportunity for Japan – if it's paying attention. The Japanese ought to offer to assist with the recovery effort. Saipan is only a four-hour flight from Tokyo and a fairly short trip by sea. The Japan Self-Defense Force is skilled at natural disaster recovery efforts and can be useful.