Author: The Publisher

GREAT BAY –Port St. Maarten CEO Mark Mingo, is pleased with the progress to advance Sint Maarten as a homeport destination in the Northeastern Caribbean. During a meeting that included Minister of Tourism and Economic Affairs Ingrid Arrindell, discussions focused on investments to further develop home porting at Port St. Maarten with Pullmantur Cruises and budget airline XL Airways; and investments to increase airlift via XL Airways. XL Airways was represented by Laurent Magnin, President Director General/CEO/Chairman, Luc Bereni, Director Commercial, Program & Marketing/Chief Commercial Officer, and Stephanie Cordier, Marketing & Communication. Mingo and the Sint Maarten delegation traveled to…

GREAT BAY – Dr. Natasha J. Gittens, President & CEO of Training Professionals International Firm (TPI) earned her Certified Hospitality Trainer (CHT) certification last Tuesday from the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute, (AHLEI). “The Certified Hospitality Trainer is the most prestigious certification available to a hospitality training executive. It identifies Gittens as one who is part of an elite group of hospitality professionals who by combining education and experience with dedication to the industry have achieved a high level of expertise,” TPI said in a press statement. It is globally recognized as “a highly respected professional credential that validates Gitten’s advanced…

Education Minister Jet Bussemaker: “All students have to pay back their study debts” GREAT BAY – Dutch Education Minister Jet Bussemaker said yesterday that she does not know how much local students owe in study debts to DUO, the ministry’s executive branch for study financing. But in April, DUO told this newspaper that the combined outstanding debt is €25 million – at the current rate $26.5 million or 47.7 million guilders. In April these debts were still worth $28.5 million and 51.1 million guilders, so the euro’s decline favors local students. Bussemaker made one thing clear though: “All students have…

Here we go again: a lying witness in court. And again: lying did not help him at all. The case at hand is about a 16-year-old boy, accused initially of attempted manslaughter with a machete and finally sentenced for an attempt to cause his victim grievous bodily harm. When you get caught up in the justice system, we figure you should go to bat with a plan – one that returns the best possible outcome. The plan that works the best and is for some mysterious reason hardly ever used is this one: confess, explain why you did it and…

Education Minister Jet Bussemaker was clear about the issue of study debts: they all have to be paid back. In April, the accumulated debt of St. Maarteners who enjoyed study financing from the Netherlands, stood at €25 million, or around $26.5 million. That’s a lot of money and the impression has been created that many students are unable to pay back and that opening local bank accounts where they can make these payments in local currencies will make repayment more feasible. We don’t want to spoil the fun, but we think that this is highly unlikely, because banking fees can…

GREAT BAY – The Judge of Instruction ruled yesterday that the arrest of Checkmate-owner O’Neal A. on Monday was lawful. His custody was extended by eight days. Later yesterday A. was flown to Curacao where he will be questioned further in the Emerald-investigation. It was deemed unwise to put the suspect in the Pointe Blanche prison because his own company provides security services there. The Checkmate-owner is suspected of tax fraud, forgery, money laundering and illegal firearm possession. Photo caption: Members of the TBO-team approach a house in Cole Bay for yet another search yesterday afternoon. Photo Today / Leo…

GREAT BAY – When Justice Minister Edson Kirindongo cut the blue ribbon on the old Soremar building in Cole Bay on July 29, we wrote that this building “holds a lot of promise for the near future” because the building is destined to house a forensic lab, a state of the art shooting range and the control room for the camera surveillance system. But that future looks far away, if not uncertain, because yesterday, 92 days after the inauguration, the building is still empty. The main entrance is shuttered closed, there are weeds growing at the bottom of the stairs…

GREAT BAY – Winair has been granted a full ground handling concession by Princess Juliana International Airport, making the company the second ground handler in St. Maarten. Ground handling is commonly referred to as under the wing services, which includes baggage loading and off-loading, delivery of baggage to baggage carousels, aircraft push back, lavatory services and water services. “Winair is proud to have been granted this concession, allowing us to compete in providing services to all users of the airport on an economic and service-based scenario,” Winair’s President and CEO Michael Cleaver said. Winair thanks the airport, in particular Larry…

Doing business with the government is not without risk. One would think that, if there is one solid creditor, it would be the country. But it isn’t, and it does not even have anything to do with the question whether there is money in the bank. Take the case of the Curacao Wegenmaatschappij (CWM), the road building company of Curacao. On July 27, 2012, Minister Jacinta Scoop-Constancia (Public Health, Environment and Nature) gave CWM a contract worth 1.5 million guilders for the upgrade of the Wilhelminaplein, a prominent square in the center of Willemstad. The company went to work but…

Dear Editor, By the end of November our Members of Parliament would have been on the job for one month and it is good to take a look at how well they have represented us during their first month in office. In the first week, seven of our MPs took part in an orientation week. At the end of the orientation, all five, first-time MPs and two former MP’s received a certificate of participation. Special congratulations to the five new MPs, for taking their position and their function seriously. We assume that during the first week, the eight former MPs…