November 28, 1974

city will eliminate 8 fire cos as part of budget drive (S)

NYC Bd of Educ admr Bernard Esrig claims bd member Joseph Monserrat attended meetings in NYC and Puerto Rico about $211,660 contract bd made with Vidata Internatl Consortium at same time he was on Vidata payroll as public relations consultant in '71; Monserrat denies he had anything to do with bd's award of contract to Vidata; claims he stopped representing Vidata before co became involved with public funds; makes public lr to Vidata severing ties with co to avoid conflict of interest; claims Vidata check to him, dated over 1 month after he says he severed ties with co, represented late payment for work performed mos earlier; says he now has 'vague' recollection of attending meetings described by Esrig, who also attended, but maintains purpose of meetings was not to negotiate contract; Repr Herman Badillo, who first apptd Monserrat to Bd of Ed in '69, says he was unaware at time of Monserrat's business relationship with Vidata; Vidata is under investigation by Fed grand jury for alleged misuse of up to $553,000 of $877,000 in Fed manpower grants; co first hired Monserrat in '70 to assist in Spanish dubbing of films for Latin Amer (M)

Nov 28: Palestine Liberation Orgn (PLO) announces Nov 27 that it has taken 26 persons into custody in Beirut and in other Arab countries on suspicion of involvement in hijacking of Brit Airways VC-10 airliner from Dubai to Tunis; PLO spokesman Shefiq al-Hout says suspects will be tried in public, but does not specify when; says PLO is adhering to its request that Tunisia turn over 4 Palestinian gunmen who seized plane on Nov 21; says violent incidents like hijacking caused serious harm to Palestinian cause; says PLO will do its utmost to stop hijackings; Palestinian sources say orders have been issued by PLO leader Yasir Arafat to all of its offices to head off any subversive activity by Palestinians in foreign countries; says instructions were that Palestinian struggle should be directed solely against Israel; 4 hijackers were described as belonging to Martyr Abou Mahmoud Squad, group opposed to PLO because of its current emphasis on diplomacy; Lebanese daily As Safir quotes Palestinian sources as having said that 4 hijackers told authorities in Tunis that hijacking was planned by head of radical splinter group known as Arab Nationalist Youth for the Liberation of Palestine (M)

Fed Reserve Chmn Arthur F Burns, calling on US to adopt oil conservation program of 'austerity' proportions, suggests sizable tax on gasoline, on imported oil, or on automobiles according to weight or horsepower; urges some preliminary planning on stronger measures to reduce domestic consumption; says gasoline rationing is 'second best' to letting mkt forces work; says steps should be taken to ease impact of cutback on specific industries (S)

UN Gen Assembly, by 56-54 vote, with 24 abstentions, approves resolution Nov 27 calling for conciliation between Cambodian Govt of Pres Lon Nol and govt-in-exile of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, in effect, deciding Cambodia may keep its seat in UN for another yr; resolution strongly backed by US; is counter to one for ouster backed by China, Algeria and Yugoslavia; denounced by Chinese Amb Huang Hua; defended by US Amb John A Scali and Philippines Foreign Min Carlos P Romulo (M)