Commonwealth Casino Commission: IPI revocation hearing to continue after Manglona’s assumption
CCC’s board chair Edward DeLeon Guerrero has said the revocation of IPI’s licence will be one of the first issues to be addressed.
Northern Mariana Islands.- The Commonwealth Casino Commission (CCC) board chair Edward DeLeon Guerrero has said the regulator is waiting for the approval of Thomas A. Manglona as a new member to go ahead with revocation proceedings against Imperial Pacific International (IPI).
A former port manager in Rota, Manglona was nominated to join the Commonwealth Casino Commission (CCC) by governor Arnold I. Palacios a month ago. He will fill the seat vacated by Martin Mendiola, whose term ended on April 30.
Palacios has not yet put forward a nominee from Tinian, but Deleon Guerrero mentioned that three commissioners would be sufficient to form a quorum for the revocation hearing. The commission has a total of five seats but there are currently three members: Deleon Guerrero, vice chairman Ralph S. Demapan, and commissioner Mario Taitano, all from Saipan.
Deleon Guerrero has recused himself from proceedings to serve as an advocate for the petitioner, CCC executive director Andrew Yeom, who filed a complaint against IPI for its failure to pay the casino licence and regulatory fees.
During a monthly regular meeting in Gualo Rai on Thursday, Deleon Guerrero gave an update on IPI’s debt to the CNMI government. As of Thursday, he stated that the casino operator owes the CNMI US$77.5m for Annual Licence Fees from August 2020 and US$17.6m for Casino Regulatory Fees from October 2020.
According to Mariana’s Variety, Deleon Guerrero also mentioned that the CCC would also need to request the federal court to lift the automatic stay on the revocation hearing following the Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition filed by IPI earlier this year. He noted that the automatic stay prevents CCC from proceeding with the revocation proceedings.
IPI creditors seek holistic approach to assets sale
The committee of IPI’s unsecured creditors aims to engage Intrepid Investment Bankers to market IPI’s properties as a holistic business rather than real estate property to attract more potential buyers and potentially increase the sale price. The committee believes Intrepid may be able to identify potential buyers that the current limited marketing process has overlooked.
According to The Saipan Tribune, creditors said that if the approach does not succeed, IPI can proceed with a real estate sale using the proposed real estate broker.
In August, IPI requested approval from the federal bankruptcy court to sell its unfinished Garapan hotel casino and real estate assets for US$10m to Loi Lam Sit, a resident of Hong Kong who manages Top Pride International, a wholesale distributor of cosmetic products. The proposal sale would include the company’s ownership interest in Imperial Pacific Properties, which holds leasehold interests in adjacent lots to the construction site.
IPI’s legal representative, Chuck Choi, said the cost of completing the construction of the hotel would be between US$100m and $150m.
