SAIPAN, 11 NOVEMBER 2019 (SAIPAN TRIBUNE) — Pacific Games Council (PGC) officials will meet with Northern Marianas Governor Ralph DLG Torres tomorrow to discuss important matters related to CNMI’s hosting of the 2021 Pacific Mini Games.
PGC president Vidhya Lakhan and chief executive officer Andrew Minogue are scheduled to arrive on Saipan early tomorrow morning for their meeting with Torres in the afternoon.
Northern Marianas Sports Association (NMSA) officials are also expected to join the meeting, which will be the first gathering among stakeholders since the CNMI’s hosting of the Mini Games was confirmed in August in Samoa during the 2019 Pacific Games.
Neither PGC nor NMSA has disclosed the detailed agenda of the meeting, but in previous communication with Minogue, he mentioned that the next step after the Mini Games hosting confirmation is the contract signing between the PGC and the host nation.
The visitors are also expected to check on the facilities that will be used for the Mini Games. Only minor repairs and clearing have been done at the Oleai Sports Complex—the main hub of the quadrennial event—as NMSA is still waiting for Federal Emergency Management Agency’s go ahead to proceed with the repair work. The project is expected to begin early next year.
NMSA is also waiting for the appointment of three government officials to the Pacific Mini Games Oversight Committee.
“The Oversight Committee was formed shortly after the Games were awarded to us in 2014. The Committee currently lacks three members, to be appointed by the governor,” NMSA president Michael White said. (PACNEWS).