PHILIPSBURG -– On June 16th, 2020, State Secretary Knops held and chaired a meeting regarding several urgent matters, including the conditions for further liquidity support from the Kingdom Council. Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs and the Minister of Finance Ardwell Irion were in attendance. The Prime Minister believes that State Secretary Knops did not have all the necessary information before the meeting and behaved in an unbecoming manner. Prime Minister Jacobs stated, “As kingdom partners, we should treat each other with mutual respect, and that certainly did not happen during the meeting.” According to Prime Minister Jacobs, the information submitted on…
Author: The Publisher
by Dr. Hensley D. Tromp ~ The Corona RMR walks and talks like the pre-Corona RMR ~ With unmatched exuberance, the Curaçao government announced the Rijksministerraad (RMR) decision of March 27, 2020, to exempt Curaçao from complying with the provisions of article 15 paragraph 1 of the Rijkswet financieel toezicht (Rft), which calls for a balanced budget. This decision by the RMR was taken in light of the government’s request in pursuit of article 25 paragraph 1 of the Rft to deal with the consequences of the coronavirus crisis. This exuberance proved short-lived, however, when it was announced that on…
PHILIPSBURG -– On June 16, 2020, Party for Progress (PFP) Members of Parliament (MP) Melissa Gumbs and Raeyhon Peterson have submitted questions to the Honorable Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure (VROMI) Egbert C. Doran. Previously, on February 26th, 2020, the PFP faction had submitted questions to the then-caretaker Minister of VROMI Christopher Wever concerning the actions undertaken by the Ministry during the period of caretaker status of the former Council of Ministers. The questions posed to Wever concerned, among others, the long outstanding lack of policy related to the issuance of government long-lease land and water…
PHILIPSBURG— Faction Leader for the United People’s Party in Parliament of St. Maarten, the honourable Grisha Heyliger-Marten, is demanding that government “put our local contractors and companies to work first.” In a press release issued Tuesday by MP Heyliger-Marten she asked whether the mistakes of the past would repeat themselves where foreign contractors are allowed to bring their own heavy equipment to the island despite many local companies owning the same types of machines. “I am calling on the Ministers of Government responsible for these projects to ensure that this time around the people of St. Maarten are protected. Contractors…
POND ISLAND — The Supervisory Board of Directors of the Telem Group of Companies has recently requested a shareholders meeting with the Council of Ministers; specifically, with the Shareholder Representative and Prime Minister, Ms. Silveria Jacobs. The purpose is to discuss pending matters from the previous sitting government, with specific attention to the current situations brewing at the Telem Group of Companies. The Supervisory Board in its communication to the government provided a proposed agenda which includes among other topics, the appointment of a fifth board member, a spot that had to be filled since the removal of Mr. Arnell…
~ and about the Assistance by the Government of the Netherlands to Fund these Programs ~ PHILIPSBURG – Three factions in Parliament have requested an urgent meeting of Parliament to hear from the Government regarding the SSRP payroll and unemployment programs and the status of the liquidity assistance from the Netherlands. This matter has taken on more urgency, given the deadline of June 15th as communicated by State Secretary R. Knops, and the reliance on the second tranche of 29M NAF to fund the SSRP programs. In their letter to the Chairperson of Parliament, the three factions also mentioned a…
PHILIPSBURG – Justice Minister Anna Richardson has issued a press statement about the status of temporary residence permit-holders, warning them to arrange the extension of their permit or run the risk of deportation. MPs Melissa Gumbs and Raeyhon Peterson (Party for Progress) have expressed concerns about compliance with international human rights standards in questions they submitted to the minister. The PFP notes in its questions that statements and press releases are not legally binding and that any action by the ministry has to be based on the law – be it through a national ordinance, a national decree, or a…
Concerned about Compliance with International Human Rights Standards PHILIPSBURG – PFP Members of Parliament Melissa Gumbs and Raeyhon Peterson have submitted questions to Minister Anna Richardson, following the Minister’s announcement that the country’s immigration laws would be “strictly enforced,” as well as encouraging those without resident permits to voluntarily leave the island or face detainment and deportation. The faction has stated publicly that the country’s rampant illegal immigration problem has desperately needed attention for over ten years now and both MPs commend the Minister for at least taking the initiative to start the discussion to handle this issue. However, both…
AIRPORT — Some 14 residents of Guyana were repatriated back to their country of birth on the afternoon of Saturday, June 13th, 2020. A charter flight that originated out of Guyana brought back several Dutch nationals who were stuck in Guyana for several months following the COVID-19 lockdown. This flight was made possible through serious negotiations between the Guyana Consul to St. Maarten Kim Lucas-Felix, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Guyana, and the Department of Foreign Relations on St. Maarten. These negotiations were ongoing for several weeks, and it was seen as positive for all parties. The Trans Guyana…
PHILIPSBURG — In a personal interview with StMaartenNews.com, Chairman of the Board of the St. Maarten Academy PSVE (Preparatory Secondary Vocational Education) Roland E. Duncan called on the government to just cut the school subsidy by 12,5% and leave his school alone. In this interview, Roland Duncan, former minister of justice, talks about how the government is demanding 12,5% of the teacher’s salaries. The government has instructed the schools to deduct 12,5% of the personnel costs. The schools don’t particularly have to touch salaries. However, as Duncan pointed out, the only personnel costs the schools have are the salaries. As…
