By Hilbert Haar The National Gazette reads these days as a manual for tax payers on the run. Hundreds of pages in the government’s official publication are dedicated to the listing of companies and private citizens that have outstanding taxes and that are nowhere to be found. In the Gazette publications issued between October 11 and December 20 I counted 1,439 such entries – give or take one or two because after sifting through this mountain of information my eyes started glazing over towards the end. The message that strings all these announcements together is rather unsettling. None of these…
Author: The Publisher
PHILIPSBURG — The St. Maarten Police Force (KPSM) issued a press release on Thursday, December 27, 2019, with reports on several incidents that took place over the Christmas holidays. Man showed up at the Medical Center with a gunshot wound A man is currently at the Sint Maarten Medical Center after being shot by an unknown person on early Thursday morning of December 26th 2019. Central dispatch directed personnel of the detective department to the medical center around 01.00 am to investigate the matter. The victim with the initials M.K L-B could not give an account of what exactly had…
Dear Editor, We all agree that ship jumping is a major problem in Sint Maarten . It seems to me that it is worthwhile to find out why ship jumping does not occur to the same extent in other jurisdictions in which multi party options are available to the voter. One of the obvious reasons is that with a tiny parliament and relatively large number of parties, the effect (and possible benefits to the parliamentary member) are much greater. Statistically the impact of one ship jumper in a parliament of 15 members is much more than one person doing the…
UNION FOR ST MARTIN’S WORKING PEOPLE (ST MARTIN’S MOVEMENT) DEMONSTRATION THURSDAY DECEMBER 12 MAIN DEMANDS NATIONAL PLAN FOR RISK PREVENTION (NPRP) Abolition of the NPRP imposed on the St Martin’s population by the prefectural decree of August 6, 2019 Enhance the 2011 NPRP to allow for an adequate protection of the population Put a stop to the expropriation along the beaches Allow access to their beach property to the residents having owned for 30 years Stop the court proceedings against the residents rebuilding or renovating their houses destroyed during hurricane Irma Reinforce the existing constructions in the vulnerable areas Protect…
PHILIPSBURG — On Thursday, December 19, 2019, well-known celebrity real estate agent, Arun Jagtiani, announced that he had partnered with Cani TV, owned by French television producer, Joel Ayuk, to produce season 2 of “Talking Politics with Arun Jagtiani”. “We have just finished production on 14 episodes which features interviews with two candidates from each of the political parties contesting the upcoming parliamentary elections.” explained Arun Jagtiani. “We tried to highlight one incumbent and one new candidate from each party. With the exception of two parties we accomplished this formula.” “We did our best to create a very neutral platform…
BUILDING OUR FUTURE BY THE LIGHT OF THE LOVE OF CHRISTMAS By H.E. drs. Eugene B. Holiday Governor of Sint Maarten My Fellow Sint Maarteners, I bring you warm greetings for Christmas. Christmas is my favorite Holiday. It is as the carol tells us: “the most wonderful time of the year”. It is the season that lights up our hearts and brings out the very best in most of us. The very best thanks to the eternal flame of God’s unconditional love for us, revealed through the gift of his son Jesus. The Bible tells us that wise men from…
Leader of the SMCP, Wycliffe Smith, writes in an article about the H-Factor. Already on November 7, 2019, during an ad hoc committee meeting on electoral reform, the former MP Claude Chacho Peterson proposed that no coalition should be formed with shipjumpers. During his speech the MP for the SMCP said parties should sign an convenant stating that they would not form any governments with shipjumpers. MP Peterson said this would take away the incentive for shipjumpers to go independent and form their own one-man factions. Other ways to disincentivize the shipjumpers was to take away their privilege to get…
~ To hold open house December 30th ~ CUL DE SAC – Kenepa Garden Estate, a new private residential development by M&M Development N.V., marks a milestone this month with the completion of its infrastructural targets, including the installation of underground utilities, high-speed fiber optic cable and fire hydrants. Kenepa Garden Estate comprises 29 lots located behind Emilio Wilson Historical and Cultural Park just off of L.B. Scott Road and adjacent to St. John’s Estate. An open-house will be held at the estate on Monday, December 30, from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. Caribbean living is all about being neighbourly. A special invitation to the open…
~ Boardwalk Festival ushers in the Season ~ GREAT BAY – The country’s capital will come alive on Saturday night with the lighting of Front Street, Back Street, and the Boardwalk Boulevard in the spirit of Christmas. Adding to this festive display, the Boardwalk Christmas Festival is about to launch to further bring in the holiday season. On the initiative by the Minister of TEATT Mellissa Arrindell-Doncher, town will shine bright to lift the spirits of visitors and residents alike. The Department of Culture, FunTopia, MixMaster Crew, and Port St. Maarten will come together to carry out the festival and…
By Wycliffe Smith The human factor is the most important element in maintaining or destabilizing government. The Informateurs’, Dr. Nilda Arduin and Mr. Jan Beaujon, in their Report of March 2018, entitled “More than the Numbers”, presented the formula for good governance and for stability of Government. Note that in this article the term “government” refers to Parliament and the Council of Ministers combined. The Informateurs, after discussions with the political parties and various stakeholders in the community, came to the conclusion that the two main requirements for good governance and stability of Government are: (1) a well-defined governing program…
