Harbour View – On October 3, 2019, His Excellency the Governor of Sint Maarten, drs. E.B. Holiday, received a draft national decree from the Council of Ministers regulating the amendment of the decree of September 23, 2019, to dissolve Parliament and call early elections. This is the result of the decision of the members of the Central Voting Bureau, given their concerns raised, to make their positions available by letter of October 1, 2019. Within the Kingdom of the Netherlands there is a basic democratic principle that once elections are called it cannot be revoked. A decree calling for elections…
Author: The Publisher
Minister Geerlings says civil servants the foundation of Sint Maarten’s democracy as 11 take the oath POND ISLAND, Sint Maarten – On Friday September 27, 11 civil servants from the Ministry of Finance took the Civil Servants Oath formalizing their civil service status. During a brief ceremony on Friday, Minister of Finance Hon. Perry Geerlings, described the oath taking as having reached a milestone. In his congratulatory message, Minister Geerlings said: “Several of you have been waiting a number of years for this moment. I am a civil servant as well and I went through this same process. When I…
PHILIPSBURG — Faction leader of the United St. Maarten (US) party MP Rolando Brison will head USP’s list in the #1 position for the upcoming Parliamentary Elections. Brison contested the last Parliamentary elections in the #4 slot on the USP under the leadership of MP Frans Richardson. MP Richardson, with the support of his party’s board, made the announcement on Tuesday night during a meeting with USP candidates who will also be contesting the elections. The move is in keeping with the USP’s principle position of giving young adults an opportunity to not just find a political home within the…
By Hilbert Haar When will politicians learn that they have to play by the rules? Given the soap opera the interim elections have become that could take some time. A lot of time. I won’t go into the specifics of all the terms the law has put in place for elections. Suffice it to say that the constitution conflicts with the electoral law and the national ordinance registration and finances political parties. Members of the Central Voting Bureau have drawn their conclusions and did the only thing they could reasonably do. They resigned. It is not that the government was…
Philipsburg – Now that all members of the Central Voting Bureau have resigned, the interim elections are in jeopardy and it is at this moment uncertain when they will be able to take place in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations. Under the current legislation it seems a mission impossible, because stipulations in the Constitution –that the new parliament has to take office within three months after the decree to dissolve parliament has been published in the National Gazette – conflict with other requirements from the electoral law and the national ordinance registration and finances political parties. Central Voting…
PHILIPSBURG — The Police Force of St. Maarten (KPSM) in collaboration with the Public Prosecutor’s Office came together on Monday 30th September 2019, to form a Task force aimed at bringing stakeholders together to collectively reduce the number of schools fights among our St. Maarten youth. It seemed imperative that we remind the community of a previously released plea for peace among our youth. The task force consists of individuals of the Police Management Team, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, community police officers and the Juvenile department. Some objectives of the taskforce will be: First and foremost to inform and educate…
PHILIPSBURG – As a result of the decision on October 1st, of all the members of the Central Voting Bureau to make their positions available, the Council of Ministers took the decision to postpone Postulation Day that was scheduled for October 2nd 2019. It is important to note that the decision on the dismissal of Parliament by the Council of Ministers will remain in place while the dates for Postulation Day, Election Day and the new sitting of Parliament will be amended allowing for the proper execution of the election. Additionally, this decision gives the opportunity to all political parties…
Part 3 in a multi-part series about US Pre-Clearance for St. Maarten and the SXM Airport. Read the nuts and bolts of pre-clearance and what it will take to make things happen in this third installment. A review.
PHILIPSBURG – There has been nothing but silence from outgoing Minister of Tourism and Economic Affairs Stuart Johnson about the standing of the Princess Juliana International Airport with the American Federal Aviation Authority (FAA), but a few days ago, during the general assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a specialized organization of the United Nations, the Netherlands obtained a seat on the ICAO-council for the next three years, thus giving the Kingdom direct influence on aviation matters. Infrastructure Minister Van Nieuwenhuizen attended the 40th ICAO Assembly in Montreal last week to make the case for the Dutch candidacy…
Is there a cure for the seemingly never-ending battle between an obstinate parliament – that sends the government home – and an evenly stubborn Council of Ministers that reacts by invoking Article 59 of the Constitution and thereby dissolving the parliament and calling for new elections? The topic certainly has the attention of at least some citizens. Antonio Aventurin for instance, opened this can of worms on his Facebook-page by suggesting two changes to Article 59. Currently, this article says: 1. The parliament can be dissolved by national decree. 2. The decision to dissolve includes the obligation for a new…
