This week, during a spirited discussion with a friend who isn’t afraid of bold ideas, he described GEBE as a “virgin company.” Intrigued, we pondered over the analogy. Richard Branson, the iconic entrepreneur, penned an autobiographical book titled “Losing My Virginity,” chronicling his path from Virgin Records to a global empire. The analogy struck a chord because GEBE, our government-owned utility, stands at a similar crossroads. Our radical friend’s assertion about GEBE’s financial status sparked our interest. While historically the company may have had loans, its current financial state seems to be without outstanding debt, akin to a ‘virgin’ company.…
Author: The Publisher
PHILIPSBURG — Former Member of Parliament Rolando Brison’s recent intervention regarding the availability of digital banking services in St. Maarten has sparked considerable debate, especially as local clients of Revolut find themselves facing renewed account blocks despite earlier assurances. In order to regain access to their accounts, clients are now required to submit identification documents and additional information for review, casting uncertainty on their continued access. Former MP Rolando Brison’s proactive motion aimed at safeguarding accessibility to digital banking services in St. Maarten. Coinciding with the approval of the 2023 national budget on December 14, 2023, Parliament unanimously supported Brison’s…
PHILIPSBURG — Former member of the Dutch parliament Jorien Wuite has been appointed as a crown-member of the Social Economic Council (SER) in the Netherlands, dossierkoninkrijksrelaties.nl reports. Minister Van Gennip (Social Affairs and Employment) nominated Wuite and the Council of Ministers gave its approval on Thursday. Crown members are independent experts who are nominated by the cabinet and appointed by the king. They do however not represent the government. Wuite (born in 1964) was from March 31, 2021, until December 6, 2023, a member of the Dutch parliament for D66. In that function she pleaded for better relationships and cooperation…
PHILIPSBURG — Members of Parliament (MPs) were informed on Wednesday about the introduction of interruptions during Public Meetings of Parliament. Chair of Parliament Sarah Wescot Williams clarified at the onset of the continuation of the 2024 budget debates, stating, “Article 43 of our Rules of Order allows the president to permit interruptions, which must consist of brief remarks or questions without introduction.” “As of today, Wednesday, March 27, 2024, I will, in accordance with the Rules of Order, allow interruptions during Public Meetings of Parliament,” declared the Chair of Parliament. In practice, interruptions occur when a speaker is interrupted by…
PHILIPSBURG – Drs. Raymond Jessurun is a strong proponent of equal treatment of all citizens in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Currently, citizens living in St. Maarten, do not get that treatment, even though they hold a Dutch passport. Social benefits, pensions and wages are all lower in St. Maarten than they are in the Netherlands. Unemployment benefits? They do not even exist on our island. Jessurun has repeatedly, and on many different forums, referred to the international treaties that actually mandate that the Kingdom treats all of its citizens equally but it simply does not happen. This is, Jessurun…
PHILIPSBURG — Since 2021 the government had never ordered more than 550 plates for taxi licenses but over the past couple of years around 30 percent, or 165, of these plates were not picked up. This mean that there are around 385 taxis active on the Dutch side of our island. There are 200 cab drivers on the French side of the island. This appears from answers Minister Arthur Lambriex (Tourism, Economic Affairs, Telecommunication and Transport) provided to seventeen questions from the Integrity Chamber. In 2021, 182 plates were not picked up, in 2022 and 2023 165. Lambriex stated that…
PHILIPSBURG — The Social Economic Council advised the government more than ten years ago, in February 2013 to leave the monetary union with Curacao as soon as possible. Politicians may have read the advice, or maybe they did not but the result was that they did nothing at all with it. The Council’s advice to introduce dollarization also fell on deaf ears. Even before that advice was published it was clear that St. Maarten was not happy with the Central Bank of Curacao and Sint Maarten (CBCS) and the associated monetary union. In April 2012, then Minister of Finance Hiro…
PHILIPSBURG — The draft 2024 budget mentions 572.2 million guilders ($319.7 million) in expenditures and 574.8 million ($321.1 million) in revenue – a modest surplus of around 2 million ($1.1 million). The budget for the parliament is 7.3 million guilders ($4.1 million), an increase of 12.7 percent. Remarkable are the 23 percent increase for travel expenditures to just above one million and the increase of representation costs from 100,000 to 150,000 guilders (from $55,866 to $83,799). The budget contains 1.8 million ($1 million) in pensions for former politicians. The total costs for the Ministry of General Affairs are 5.1 million…
PHILIPSBURG — Reyjets.com, a company of StMaartenNews.com publisher Terrance Rey, is spreading its wings by offering seamless transfers from St. Maarten to St. Barths from anywhere in the world. Terrance Rey is also owner and operator of AirSXM.com. Rey has over twenty years of experience in organizing charters by air, land or sea to St. Barths. Now he is offering his unique and highly specialized service to rich jetsetters who want to travel to St. Barths from anywhere in the world with seamless and hassle-free connections through the surrounding islands such as St. Maarten, one of the main gateways to…
PHILIPSBURG — The Prince Bernhard Bridge – the connection between Bush Road and the A.Th. Illidge Road over the Fresh Pond – is once more the subject of a controversy. The Ministry of Public Housing, Urban Planning, Environment and Infrastructure (VROMI) announced in a press statement that Omega Construction will take three to four months to restore the bridge. The work includes the demolition of the “existing monument.” Said monument is a stone marker that identifies the structure as the Prince Bernhard Bridge. It has been in place since January 25, 1950, when Bernhard flew to St. Maarten in his…
