Government of Guam is open for business
With U.S., Guam and CNMI already flying at half-staff, both Joint Region Marianas and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands will be following President Donald J. Trump's executive order authorizing Dec. 5 as a National Day of Mourning to pay respect to the 41st President of the United States, George H.W. Bush. All executive departments and agencies of the federal government including Joint Region Marianas will close Dec. 5.
Supervisors will identify employees who must report to work on Dec. 5 for reasons of national security, defense, or other essential public business. Dec. 5 will be treated as any other federal holiday for pay and leave purposes. Any paid leave scheduled for Dec. 5 will be cancelled and the employee will not be charged leave for that day. This guidance applies to non-appropriated fund employees. The following facilities will be open for regular hours of operation: U.S. Naval Hospital Guam, Navy Exchange, AAFES Exchange, and Orote Point and Andersen Air Force Base commissaries. The Charles King Fitness Center will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; the Liberty Center will be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and all other MWR Guam facilities will be closed. All Department of Defense Education Activity Guam schools will be closed.
Meanwhile, Acting Governor of the CNMI, Victor B. Hocog, issued this proclamation:
WHEREAS, he was first elected to public office as a United States representative from Texas and then served as the Ambassador to the United Nations, Chairman of the Republican National Committee, Chief of the US Liaison Office with the People’s Republic of China, and the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency; and
WHEREAS, President Bush served two terms as Vice President, visited the Northern Mariana Islands in October 1985 and toured the island of Saipan with Commonwealth and Micronesian leaders, before being elected the 41st President of the United States, where he oversaw the end of the Cold War with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the reunification of Germany, and the victory in the First Gulf War; and
WHEREAS, in retirement, President Bush worked with other presidents on humanitarian efforts and to urge bipartisan unity on the critical issues facing the country; and
WHEREAS, on December 1, 2018, President Donald J. Trump designated December 5, 2018 as a National Day of Mourning and signed an Executive Order providing for the closing of executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government on December 5, 2018; and
WHEREAS, it is only fitting to join the rest of the country to publicly set aside a day of mourning so that all Americans can honor the life and memory of George Herbert Walker Bush;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, VICTOR B. HOCOG, Acting Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, by virtue of the power and authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the Commonwealth, do hereby order the following:
Wednesday, December 5, 2018, shall be recognized as an official Day of Mourning in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Residents of the Commonwealth are encouraged to gather, assemble, and pay their respects to the memory of George Herbert Walker Bush in homes, businesses, public buildings, schools, places of worship, or other appropriate places for public expression of remembrance.
To allow non-critical personnel of the Commonwealth to attend such observances, Commonwealth departments, agencies, and offices shall be CLOSED on that day, with the exception of schools, hospitals, and other critical public services.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand on this
4th day of December 2018.
VICTOR B. HOCOG
Acting Governor