PHILIPSBURG — Towed cars could cost their owners or users between $75 and $115 plus a daily storage fee of $15, it appears from the towing policy published in the National Gazette of October 14. The towing fee depends on the moment a car is towed: $75 before 6 p.m., $95 between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. and $115 on Saturdays, Sundays and national holidays. The policy defines under which circumstances there is a legal basis for towing a car. Leaving cars that are not drivable or defective on public roads for longer than two times 24 hours is prohibited…
Author: The Publisher
PHILIPSBURG — The Council of Advice will not be drawn into a political discussion about the suspension of independent Member of Parliament Claudius Buncamper. This appears from the Council’s reaction to an advice-request from the parliament. On June 3 Buncamper sent a letter to parliament with the request to ask the Council of Advice for an advice about the interpretation of articles 50.2 and 50.3 of the constitution. Those articles regulate under which circumstances a member of parliament is suspended. Buncamper, through his request to the parliament, wanted to know up to what point articles 50.2 and 50.3 of the…
~ 60 students, teachers, parents were in attendance for the kick-off of the accelerator ~ GREAT BAY — Application to the National Youth Pitch Competition closed on September 30. Sixteen (16) teams comprising a total of forty-nine (49) students in eight (8) of the ten (10) secondary schools applied. Teams consisted on average of three students and most schools entered multiple applications to the competition. Business ideas range from retail to agritech (agriculture technology) to recreation to beauty to circular economy. All teams had to submit an overview of financials and a video indicating what they would do with the…
PHILIPSBURG — In his article ‘Positioning a Caribbean tourism destination’ Cdr. Bud Slabbaert basically points out that a destination must have a unique selling point; in other words, offer something competing destinations do not have. “Smart positioning will make one destination stand out from the rest,” he wrote, adding that positioning should come before promotion. “The Caribbean marketplace is cluttered with twenty-plus territories positioning themselves much in the same way and offering similar benefits.” This is of course true: Caribbean destinations are all in a market fighting for tourists looking for sun, sand and fun. St. Maarten is no exception…
By Hilbert Haar It is official. The government has published its house rules and procedures for the live Council of Ministers press briefing as well as its media accreditation policy in the National Gazette of September 16. The muzzling of the local press has entered the next level. That the Department of Communication sets house rules for those who want to attend the weekly press briefings – okay, that’s normal. You can argue whether some of these rules make sense, but in the end you are, so to speak, in somebody else’s house and you are not making the rules.…
PHILIPSBURG — A publication by the tax inspectorate in the National Gazette of September 30 has caused some confusion about the status of one of the judges that works at the Court in First Instance in Philipsburg. The publication is a warrant from the Tax Inspectorate addressed to Cornelis Theodorus Mar Luijks, with the addition: “previously living at Madame Estate Road 2, Madama Estate, currently without known residence or whereabouts in St. Maarten or elsewhere.” If this announcement were accurate it would pose a problem for the person in question, in this case Judge Coen Luijks, because the law stipulates…
Dear Editor, Going independent affects Government liquidity position, which has always been a known fact that no one, whether MP or Minister has seriously touched on since 10 10 10. All Ministers of Finance, whether past or present knows of this fact, but no one would ever seriously and publicly speak about this. But again, these are the realities of how our Constitution, its Ordinances, its Regulations and Policies as it pertains to the Parliament of Sint Maarten works. And let us not forget the constant politics that goes along with it. Who has the Power to change this all?…
PHILIPSBURG — The Ombudsman will not pursue further investigation of the issuance of long lease rights in the Over the Bank area. It sent a notice of termination to VROMI-Minister Egbert Doran. In a press release, the Ombudsman points out that it is not authorized to continue with an investigation if an administrative, civil or criminal procedure is in process or if an administrative decision was made. The government filed a petition for a regular court procedure on July 26. In January of this year, the court froze all decisions about the issuance of long lease rights in Over the…
PHILIPSBURG — The new makeup of Parliament with nine factions and five independent MPs has some financial consequences, it appears from answers by Minister of Finance Ardwell Irion to questions posed by MP Angélique Roumou. While an increase in expenditures for additional support staff was not budgeted, Irion writes that the monthly costs will increase by 33,016 guilders per month for the remaining three months of the year: a total of 99,048 guilders ($55,334). “If these costs cannot be absorbed in the budget of the Parliament this means that the budget deficit will increase,” the minister writes. Roumou also wanted…
PHILIPSBURG — “Don’t tell me what you value; show me your budget and I’ll tell you what your values are,” is a quote attributed to American president Joe Biden that easily comes to mind after reading the Law Enforcement Council’s report about St. Maarten’s efforts to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism. Conclusion: those efforts are insufficient. Main reason: a painful shortage of equipment, human resources and expertise. ‘The continuous lack of resources hamper authorities from achieving desired results,” the report states, adding that it is “crucial that the Ministry of Justice makes the necessary investments.” All this…
