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Friday, October 31, 2008
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On the ocean road behind Formosa in Uliga, Majuro
Nevada Judge Valerie P. Cooke (left) led a training on negotiating tactics for judges, lawyers, government officials and others at the High Court last week, involving the participants in role playing and practice negotiations. The workshop included “Tongue Fu Tips” for what to say in difficult situations, and the top 13 things lawyers can do to improve their negotiations. Photo: Douglas Henry.
Gas rip-off
Controversial bill
off Senate agenda
US Senate bill 1756 is now off the calendar in Washington and whether it comes back for reconsideration in 2009 depends on many factors, a leading US Senate staff member told the Journal this week. “There will be no further action on the bill this year,” Allen Stayman told the Journal in response to emailed questions this week. Stayman is a professional staff member for the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and its Democratic Chairman Senator Jeff Bingaman. “Whether there will be action next year will depend on several unknowns such as the position of the RMI government, the position of the incoming Administration officials at agencies such as Office of Management and Budget, Department of Energy, Department of Interior and Department of Labor, and the new membership of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee,” Stayman said.
$1.8 million for MALGov staff and council members
Majuro Atoll Local Government’s rejected fiscal year 2009 budget shows $1.8 million is planned for salaries for the 192 workers, council members and mayor. The projected salary budget amount is 47 percent of the total proposed FY2009 budget of $3,870,045.
MEC loses $3.6M during FY2007
The Marshalls Energy Company received an unqualified audit from Deloitte and Touche auditors — meaning its financial records were available and auditable. But the audit also pointed out five findings (problems), three of which it described as “material weaknesses” (serious problems). The audit shows that MEC’s losses for fiscal year 2007 were over $3.6 million, though this was a small improvement over FY2006 when losses were slightly over $4 million.
US gives money to the Marshall Islands
US Ambassador Clyde Bishop met with Finance Minister Jack Ading Monday to officially “present” the US government’s first Compact funding for fiscal year 2009.
In October the RMI Ministry of Finance has received Compact-funded payments from the US totaling $14,410,461.
The Marshalls Energy Company this week dropped its diesel price to under $3 per gallon, but local gas stations report that they are still paying more than $5 per gallon for gas and diesel from Mobil Oil Micronesia. But a Mobil official disputed this, saying the wholesale price to local dealers is less than $5 while the gas stations are charging more than $6 per gallon. Worldwide fuel prices dropped to their lowest level in two years this week. As of Friday last week, the gas price at the refinery in Singapore — where fuel used in the Marshall Islands originates — was $1.49 a gallon, virtually identical to the refinery price in November 2006, when gas was
World price dives, but not in RMI
selling in Majuro for $3.80 to $3.85 per gallon. As of Wednesday, fuel prices in Majuro ranged from $6.09 to $6.20 per gallon despite the continuing fall of world market prices. “How come MEC can sell diesel for $2.92 a gallon and we’re paying over $5 a gallon from Mobil?” said one station manager who asked not to be named. “Yes, Mobil has been dropping prices, but they’ve been smaller five-to-ten cent drops.”
The price at the Singapore refinery has dropped from a July 14 peak of $3.42 per gallon for gas to $1.49 as of last Friday. From July 25 to Monday October 27, Mobil has dropped its price to local dealers by 87 cents. While a Mobil official contends that gas stations are marking up prices by more than $1 per gallon, gas station managers say they add just a small markup. “I know the stations are not making a lot of margin (profit),” RRE’s chief executive Ramsey Reimers said. “We follow Mobil up and down.”
Local gas stations, though they have dropped their prices, have also not kept pace with Mobil’s 87 cent drop. In mid-July, gas prices at the pump here peaked at $6.85-$6.89 per gallon.
On Wednesday they were $6.09 at Riwut, $6.12 at RRE and Ace’s One Stop, and $6.20 at SEPS.
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Dash may be back next week
Air Marshall Islands only plane has been grounded since earlier this month awaiting arrival of nose landing gear. AMI General Manager Bill Capelle said the airline is hoping the replacement landing gear will arrive this weekend.
If it does, the Dash-8 could be back to its regular schedule by the end of next week, he said. In the meantime,
Capelle said Tuesday he was negotiating with Air Kiribati for a special charter flight to bring AMI customers from Tarawa to Majuro and return stranded and transit passenger passengers for Fiji from Majuro to Tarawa to connect with Air Kiribati.
This special charter flight has been tentatively scheduled for Thursday November 6 and Capelle urged
passengers to call the AMI office later this week to confirm details.
Cracks were noticed by AMI mechanics in the Dash-8 nose landing gear during a ground inspection shortly before the plane was scheduled to fly, forcing its grounding.
Replacement parts cost between $94,000 and $189,000 depending on whether AMI buys used or new landing gear.
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Journal 10/73 Journal 10/83
P1 The United States has revealed specific plans to build new military bases on the islands of Micronesia, Friends of Micronesia said in a news release. In the third round of negotiations between the US and the Micronesian Congress’ Joint Committee on Future Status, held in Maui, Hawaii, October 4-12, 1971 US military planners outlined plans for bases in P1 Several Japanese were murdered by Marshallese natives on the atoll of Lae in the Western Marshalls. The exact number of Japanese killed is not known at present, but according to Mr. Hiroshi Nakajima, executive director of the Pacific Society, a Japan-based scholarly organization, the term ‘several’ best
three districts of Micronesia. According to Senator Lazarus Salii, Chairman of the Micronesian delegation, the Air Force has “immediate requirement” for an air base on the island of Tinian in the Marianas from where the Enola Gay flew to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. The major surprise was Navy plans for the Palau. The Navy intends to construct a submarine base and ship handling facilities in Malakal Harbor, close to the famous Rock Islands. Most ominous, however, is the American insistence on the right to build additional bases “if necessary in an emergency.”
describes the number of Japanese citizens killed by the errant Marshallese. If this story so far has a chilling sense of today, relieve yourself of unnecessary anxiety since the killings being referred to are 99 years old, the past, and only revealed today through the investigations of the Pacific Society and their research efforts.
P4 Leaders of the Bikini islanders who were displaced by US testing of nuclear devices on their islands met yesterday with Maui County officials in what was describes as “a very promising meeting” on the possibility of relocating to Maui.
P7 The current price situation in the world’s copra markets is such that the Trust Territory copra stabilization board is having to dip into its own reserve funds in order to keep the price stable. Japan is now paying between $160 and $165 a ton for copra, compared with $210 to $220 a ton a year ago.
P5 Some ballots that were prepared for distribution but the corrected re-run due to some difficulties with desired spellings of candidates’ names. This is one of the most difficult things often to pin down in the Marshalls: not how to say something but how to spell it, with acceptable forms often changing from day to day.
Journal 10/98
P1 The Marshall Islands government needs to do much more to encourage private sector
development in the country, said two Marshall Islands representatives who attended a conference on Maui earlier this month that brought public and private sector officials to look at how they could cooperate to develop island economies. Ramsey Reimers, chief executive officer of RRE, and Ben Graham, general manager of the Marshall Islands Visitors Authority, said they were impressed with a wide range of innovative business developments and government reform efforts in the Federated States of Micronesia and in countries in the South Pacific. The Marshall Islands, Graham said, is one of the few countries in the region without a government-supported “entrepreneurship center.”
P7 Continuing to reform the government, including improving the environment for the private sector, as well as meeting conditions of loans provided by the Asian
Development Bank are essential steps that the RMI government must move ahead with, ADB vice president Peter Sullivan said. “Our message is they (RMI government) are doing a good job but they need to continue moving forward,” Sullivan said.