PHILIPSBURG – The Council of Ministers wrote off a debt of 2.1 million guilders ($1.17 million) of a debt lottery company My Lucky Day N.V. owed in license fee arrears. Two sources have independently from each other confirmed that the Council of Ministers agreed to forgive this debt.
The decision was taken when William Marlin was still in office as Prime Minister.
Gynecologist Dr. Randall Friday is the owner of My Lucky Day N.V..
Decisions in the Council of Ministers are taken by a majority vote but the minutes of the meetings do not record who voted for or against a particular decision.
Until Prime Minister Marlin stepped down, the National Alliance had four seats in the Council of Ministers; next to the office of the Prime Minister the party also holds the portfolios of Finance, Education and VROMI (Public Housing, Urban Development, Environment and Infrastructure). The United St. Maarten party holds two portfolios – Justice as well as Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication, while the Democratic Party has the portfolio of Public Health, Social Development and Labor.
The National Alliance therefore only needs the support from its own ministers to establish a majority vote.
Before Hurricane Irma, St. Maarten’s budget showed a surplus of 12 million guilders, but after the devastating storm, the country is looking at a deficit of 126 million in 2017.
