GREAT BAY – The development of the new general hospital is back on schedule as Vamed and SZV have settled all disputes out of court. The appeal procedures on the injunction ruling of November 26, 2016 in the case initiated by Vamed against SZV will be dismissed by both parties. Today was the first to report about the imminent settlement last Tuesday. United People’s party leader Theo Heyliger claimed in a media report that the settlement is for €1 million, but SZV-director Glen Carty declined to confirm this. “I cannot comment on this because the settlement contains a non-disclosure article.…
Author: The Publisher
The government has now until the end of this year to complete its pension and healthcare reform plans. Financial supervisor Cft did not seem too concerned yesterday about what comes down to a one-year delay, even though the clock is ticking for the sustainability of both systems. Especially pension reform promises to be an interesting issue, because the advice is now to increase the retirement age to 65. Love it or oath it, that will have to happen to keep the system sustainable. The question is whether the government will go for an abrupt increase from 60 to 65, or…
GREAT BAY – Financial supervisor Cft is cautiously optimistic about the way things are going with the country’s finances, it appeared from a press conference the Cft hosted yesterday afternoon at the Convent Building on Front Street. There are however still a few major hurdles the government has to take before the kingdom government is fully satisfied with the measures it has taken after the 2015 instruction. They concern the reform of the pension and healthcare system. For both topics, the Cft has advised the kingdom government to grant St. Maarten a new deadline – until the end of this…
ROTARY CLUB OF SINT MAARTEN CELEBRATES ITS 45TH ANNIVERSARY PHILIPSBURG, SINT MAARTEN – March 29, 2017 – The Rotary Club of Sint Maarten celebrated its 45th anniversary with a special dinner celebration at Moomba Restaurant in Maho on Thursday, March 29, 2017. To commemorate the occasion the Rotary Club awarded a Paul Harris Fellow to its only remaining charter member, Richard Gibson. Mr. Gibson accepted the award and recounted several of his memories from the early days of Rotary on Sint Maarten. Mr. Gibson went onto say, “It has been a pleasure to be a Rotarian for all of these…
Dear Editor, The long awaited governing program has finally been released under the name Solidarity for Prosperity. I commend the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), comprised of the NA, USP and DP factions, for producing such a colorful and comprehensive document. Comprehensive in the sense that it identifies practically all the issues and challenges that our society is faced with. Unfortunately though, this document does not meet the requirements of a program or a plan but can be considered an upgraded or glorified version of a manifesto. According to the dictionary, a manifesto is a written statement declaring publicly the intentions…
GREAT BAY – Asked about the reaction from Central Bank President Emsley Tromp to Finance Minister Richard Gibson’s public statement that he had not passed the screening, Minister Gibson (see file photo) said yesterday that, in his opinion, Tromp had not been upset (as this newspaper suggested) but that he thought the statement premature. “He said it was premature and that he still has the option to appeal. That is exactly what I said last week when I made it known public that he had not passed the screening. If his lawyer is taking this to court he has misspoken…
GREAT BAY – SZV and Vamed are working towards an out-of-court settlement, Minister Emil Lee (Public Health) confirmed yesterday, but he added that he is not aware that a settlement has been reached yet. “Looking at how the court case has impacted the development of the hospital our goal has been to negotiate a settlement so that the process can continue,” the minister said. “There have been discussions but they are not finalized yet. There is a desire to reach an out of court settlement so that we can proceed with the hospital the country needs. There are detailed discussions…
GREAT BAY – Pro bono attorneys Geert Hatzmann, Sjamira Roseburg and Shaira Bommel reached an agreement with Justice Minister Rafael Boasman yesterday afternoon about their outstanding invoices. Earlier this week, Hatzmann announced a possible strike if the invoices would not be paid by tomorrow. “The minister has indicated that he and his colleague of the Ministry of Finance, Richard Gibson, will make sure that all outstanding payments will be made within a week and at most within two weeks,” Hatzmann said in a statement. “In the future all invoices will be paid within a month when there are no calamities.”…
There is no doubt that the government got the message about the dump: it was the prime topic at the Council of Ministers press briefing. Minister Christophe Emmanuel made a couple of statements yesterday that may come to haunt him. Soon there will be no more fires on the dump and – even better – dumping garbage on the landfill will soon be a thing of the past too, he said. These are surely bold statements but the question will come up sooner or later how realistic they are. The definition of the term soon is of course open for…
GREAT BAY – The dump on Pond Island took center stage during yesterday’s Council of Ministers press briefing. Minister Christophe Emmanuel emphasized that the dump is a priority. “We are working on it,’ he said. At the same time, the minister said that he will not come with a comment every time the dump is on fire. “That is because next week the dump will be on fire again, and the week after as well. Right now you will see pockets of smoke on the dump. People, there is no time that the dump is not on fire,” Emmanuel said.…
