PHILIPSBURG – The Central Bank of Curacao and Sint Maarten (CBCS) has put Chairman of Parliament, MP Rolando Brison, firmly in his place with a response to a letter he sent on April 21 in which he demanded “urgent action” from the bank. Interim president José Jardim picks Brison’s arguments apart one at a time, beginning with a quote from the American economist and chess grandmaster Kenneth Rogoff: “The whole point of not relying on debt excessively in normal times is precisely to be able to use debt massively and without hesitation in situations like this.” Jardim writes that this…
Author: The Publisher
~ Motion passed to have supervisory board evaluate CEO within four weeks ~ PHILIPSBURG – The current state of affairs related to the reconstruction of the airport is “an embarrassment,” airport-director Brian Mingo “is lying to the parliament,” and the airport “is failing to properly manage the reconstruction.” Those are some of the sentiments members of parliament expressed during a rather contentious meeting with Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs and airport director Brian Mingo. At the end of a lengthy meeting, UP-MP Rolando Brison tabled a motion that got the support of most MPs, with the exception of MP Sarah Wescot-Williams…
People of St. Maarten here and abroad, I hereby address you as Prime Minister and Chair of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), in an update for today, Monday, May 11, 2020, as part of the process to keep the community of St. Maarten informed about the latest developments and the Government’s COVID-19 containment, mitigation and response measures. I would like to take this time, one day post Mother’s Day, to wish each and every mother, mother figure, and a person who makes an impact on our youth, a Happy Mother’s Day. Know that you are appreciated every day and that I’m very happy we had the…
PHILIPSBURG – The deadline for application for COVID-19 Income Support for vendors and taxi drivers for the month of April 2020 expired on Sunday, May 10th. Payments will commence from next Friday, May 15th. As the St. Maarten Stimulus and Relief Plan is reviewing applications, the question arises who should get the income support in case a permit holder ‘rents out’ his permit. Subletting, sharing and selling permits is a common practice in St. Maarten. A few hundred entrepreneurial individuals pay between $650 and $1300 per month to permit holders to operate a taxi, a watersport activity, beach spot, or…
~ The Government of The Netherlands has asked the Red Cross to coordinate the humanitarian aid for Curaçao, Aruba and Sint Maarten ~ PHILIPSBURG — The consequences of the corona pandemic can be felt everywhere. The impact in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom is significant. The islands are largely dependent on tourism, which has come to a complete standstill. Unemployment on the islands is increasing rapidly, resulting in more and more households falling below the poverty line. There is an urgent need for emergency assistance. The Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations has made €16 million euros available.…
PHILIPSBURG — Locally-owned and operated passenger handling company, Juliana Airport Handlers (JAH), refutes allegations published by online blogsite, SMN-News.com. In what is considered a malicious and reckless article, JAH has retained legal representation to take measures to ensure that the blogsite is held to legal and professional standards. In a press statement, the company’s managing director, Dylcia Lake wrote: “Juliana Airport Handlers (JAH) has taken note of an article written by SMN NEWS, wherein a picture is presented to the public that employees at JAH were abandoned and not paid their salaries for the month of March and April 2020.…
PHILIPSBURG — NAGICO Insurances will reopen to the public as of Wednesday; May 13, following the announcement by the Prime Minister and Head of EOC, Silveria Jacobs on Sunday, of government’s plan to reopen businesses on the island in strategically planned phases. In a statement, NAGICO indicated that while the green light has been given, to reopen their office immediately, NAGICO’s management took the decision to officially re-open its doors to the public on Wednesday, May 13, to allow for certain health and safety measures to be fully implemented. “The health and safety of our clients and staff is our…
AIRPORT ROAD — The COVID-19 pandemic has and continues to affect St. Maarten residents. In these times of uncertainty, we are tasked with planning our path forward, ensuring our health and well-being. WINAIR’s continued survival as a critically important business contributing to the economic engine of St. Maarten and the region must be maintained. Throughout this pandemic, WINAIR is aware of its mission to facilitate assistance by performing repatriation flights and providing relief flights to bring needed supplies and essential personnel to assist St. Maarten with combating this pandemic. By repurposing WINAIR, we ensure the safety of our critically important…
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad — The President of Republic Financial Holdings Limited (RFHL), Nigel Baptiste, announced today a profit attributable to shareholders of the parent of US$81.7 million for the six-month period ended March 31, 2020, a decline of US$36.1 million or 30.6% below the corresponding period last year. These results reflect preliminary estimates of the financial impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the Group as a result of increased operating expenses during the latter half of March 2020 and the setting aside of additional provisions of US$55.3 million for the first half of Fiscal 2020 (2019 – US$20.3 million)…
PHILIPSBURG — As of Monday, May 11, the government will be implementing a phased approach to the de-escalation process. Essential businesses and some other businesses will be allowed to open from Monday to Friday and on Saturdays, only deliveries will be allowed. On Sunday all businesses must remain closed. This approach to the de-escalation of the lockdown will be done across four phases until mid-June. This is subject to the number of COVID-19 cases continuing on the downward trend it is presently on. The key messages taken away from the address of the Prime Minister and the coordinators of the…
