Your watching the "Weekend Report" for March 27, 2009 (requires Quicktime 7.4)

Below is the text vesion of the weekend report with headlines from around Palau and the Pacific.

NEWS:

President Johnson Toribiong is currently reviewing the proposed budget for this year. When asked for his opinion, he stated that the budget was "generally okay" reports Palau Horizon. Congress approved a $58.3 million dollar Fiscal Year Budget last week with the proper appropriations, which also requires PPUC to return $945,987 to the national treasury. In his review, the President has the choice to refer, veto, or sign the bill in to law. President Toribiong stated that he will be signing the fiscal year bill today.

The Rock Island Beverage Company was cited for selling tobacco products with an expired license. Alcohol and Tobacco inspectors report that the store paid for its fine and applied for a new license. The BH store located at topside paid a $100 fine for selling tobacco products to minors. The store paid for the said fine.

In a related story, Patrol Chief Ishmael Aguon told reporters that two bars were cited for selling alcohol past 2am in the morning. The law specifically prohibits the sale of alcoholic products past 2am.

The government of Palau has asked for an extension from the FAA. President Toribiong is awaiting a reply, and is optimistic that the request will be looked upon with favor. The FAA has generously provided assistance with improving the airport, from the taxiway, two aircraft parking lots, and earlier, designing a new terminal building to replace the existing one. The FAA grant will expire come October.

  The reward for the missing Mini-14 rifle still stands at 15,000 dollars to any person who provides information or evidence leading to the arrest and conviction of a person or persons for possession of the said rifle. The rifle was last seen in early December 2008 in the trunk of a government Lexus Sedan of former president Tommy E. Remengesau Jr. at his home in Medalaii.

Sheldon Rengulbai has been sentenced to serve 20 years in prison after attacking Officer Lanson Doktok. Scheduled for a trial last week Rengulbai instead opted for a plea bargain.

Rengulabai was charged with aggravated assault and burglary. Before entering his plea bargain the original charge was first degree murder and burglary.

Kangichi Uchau, the newly elected Governor of Peleliu, is asking Pres. Toribiong for assistance regarding the recovery of a grant from the Turkish Government. Governor Uchau wishes to use the $150,000 grant to renovate Peleliu's Multipurpose Youth Gym. The grant was originally awarded to Peleliu Ngarablod of Koror, but the national government is trying to recover the money. Uchau stated that as the as the elected official serving the remainder of former Governor Ngiraingas' term it was his position that the money be returned by Peleliu Ngarablod or recovered by the national government. He also stated that he wants to use the grant to renovate Peleliu's Multipurpose Youth Gym instead of using the funds to build a new facility.

During a tourism forum last Friday President Toribiong commended Palau Pacific Resort for its policy on hiring locals. Of P.P.R.'s 225 employees 204 are Palauan, including 15 chefs and nine Palauan's in management   positions. The President went so far as to say that PPR should be a model for investors in Palau. Pres. Toribiong will issue a certificate to formally recognize PPR for capitalizing on the employment of Palauans.

On Mar 19th Minister Harry Fritz of Resources, Environment, and Tourism met with Palau Conservation Society Executive Director Tiare Holme and her staff. The meeting was to discuss how the new Ministry and PCS could work together because of their shared vision a sustainably developed Palau. During the meeting the Minister stated that he was gonna enjoy working with PCS and that a strong partnership with PCS would help them in facing challenges Palau faces as a nation.

In other news, the President has received the final report from the PPUC task force. Although he agrees with the findings of the report, he's not in complete favor of the suggested courtesy resignation of the entire PPUC board of directors. Instead, he has suggested to preserve the status quo. The preliminary report from the task force revealed that two 2-megawatt generator units must be obtained   within six months to allow time to properly rehabilitate the old units, most especially, the ones in the Aimeliik and Malakal power plants. Besides a several of the power generators needing repair, the task force also found that PPUC had failed to implement a reliable maintenance plan.

Palau's Charge d' Affaires from Japan, Kunio Nakamura will be bringing back the remains of 5 Japanese that were found in Ngesias of Peleliu. The bones have been kept in the Belau National Museum and have been studied by Dr. Masami Takenaka, councilor of Anthropological Society of Nippon, who revealed that the bone fragments belong to five Japanese individuals that were believed to have died during World War II.

The first annual farmers market   held at Asahi baseball field on Thursday march 26 2009 was   a huge success. The market Immediatley sold out with in an hour after it opened. The farmers market was to support all locally farmed products in Palau. This is what director of agriculture, Fred Sengebau had to say...

The Milusch-Dil Beauty spa celebrated   "the beauty of being a woman " by throwing a cocktail party for the ladies on Thursday march   26 . The party included a complimentary face scan and a 5 minute massage

Former Taiwan President Chen Shuibian is on trial for embezzling millions of dollars while in office. Shui-bian, faces life if convicted. His wife, son, and daughter-in-law have all admitted to being involved with embezzlement in an attempt to shield Chen. He is facing charges of siphoning off 104   million new Taiwan dollars and receiving bribes of over 9 million dollars. State prosecutors announced a corruption investigation just hours after he stepped down as president.

Principal Shirley Reich from Hays High School, in Buda Texas, evacuated her school in response to a bomb threat. All students were evacuated and kept out for two hours until given the clear. All except for eight special needs students who had mobility problems. In her defense, principal Reich stated that it was cold outside and she only wanted her students to be comfortable.

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