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Cops And Kids/ School Debate Finals

On Wednesday June 14th the Community Police Officers who headed the Cops and Kids Program held the school debate finals at the Asha Stevens Hillside Christian School in Cay Hill. The debate finals were held between students of the sixth grade representing the Seventh Day Adventist School, Sister Borgia School, Oranje School and Ruby Labega School.

During the first round, the Ruby Labega School defeated the Sister Borgia School eliminating them from moving on to the quarter finals Read more

A Critical Look At Parliament’S Budget

Parliament needs to be transparent with its budget! During budget debates members of parliament pose numerous questions, some critical, many political, concerning government’s budgeting and spending, but no one raises questions about parliament’s budget and parliament’s spending. The reason for this is because parliament’s budget is camouflaged among the budgets of the High Councils of State. Furthermore, according to the Compatibility Ordinance and the Rules of Order of Parliament the budget of Parliament is drafted by the Secretariat of Parliament, approved by the Presidium and then sent to the Minister of Finance to be included in the national budget Read more

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Sint Maarten Nature Foundation Presents To Parliament Guiding Document For Single Use Plastic Ban And Petition On Great Bay Landfill

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — Cole Bay- On Friday the 2nd of July the Director of the Sint Maarten Nature Foundation Tadzio Bervoets and Nature Foundation Projects Officer Melanie Meijer Zu-Schlochtern met with the President of Parliament the Honourable Sarah Wescot-Williams to present her the Nature Foundation’s Document outlining the steps necessary to have Sint Maarten move towards a ban of single use plastic bags Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Parliament needs to be transparent with its budget! During budget debates, members of parliament pose numerous questions, some critical, many political, concerning government’s budgeting and spending, but no one raises questions about parliament’s budget and parliament’s spending. The reason for this is because parliament’s budget is camouflaged among the budgets of the High Councils of State. Furthermore, according to the Compatibility Ordinance and the Rules of Order of Parliament the budget of Parliament is drafted by the Secretariat of Parliament, approved by the Presidium and then sent to the Minister of Finance to be included in the national budget Read more

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Ministry Vsa Working To Make Sure Water Quality Is Assured.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Ministry of VSA has the responsibility to ensure that the drinking water that is being delivered to the community is safe. Yesterday, the Inspectorate released a statement “Indeed some hotels on the Island have tested positive for legionella which can happen due to various causes. Those that were tested positive do have a program to follow to ensure that contamination is contained and prevented. The Inspectorate and the hotels are working very well together to ensure that the laws are adhered to and that public safety is protected.”
Minister Emil Lee reassures the public that at no time was there a public health risk and that if there were, the Inspectorate would adopt a policy where they would inform the public whenever there is a public health risk Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- On Wednesday, June 14th the Community Police Officers who headed the Cops and Kids Program held the school debate finals at the Asha Stevens Hillside Christian School in Cay Hill. The debate finals were held between students of the sixth grade representing the Seventh Day Adventist School, Sister Borgia School, Oranje School and Ruby Labega School.
During the first round, the Ruby Labega School defeated the Sister Borgia School eliminating them from moving on to the quarterfinals Read more

“I have no problem with Civil Servants being on Boards of Government-owned companies or Foundations, however, I do have a problem how these boards function.” --- Emmanuel.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of VROMI Christopher Emmanuel says that he does not have a problem with Civil Servants being on boards of government-owned companies and or foundations when he was asked by SMN News about the progress he has made with the St Read more

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IT Problems may delay finalization of budget 2018 --- Minister Gibson Sr. --- SZV and APS not yet paid.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Finance Richard Gibson Sr. announced on Wednesday that while in Curacao last week he received a receipt from the government of Curacao showing that they have deposited NAF.59M which has been derived from the division of assets from the former Netherlands Antilles Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:---- Minister of VSA Emil Lee confirmed on Wednesday that several hotels on St. Maarten were tested positive for legionella which can happen based on various causes. Lee made the announcement after SMN News published an article about a number of hotels that tested positive for Legionella and E-coli which was confirmed by the Inspectorate of Health.
The Minister said that the hotels that were tested positive do have a program to follow to ensure that containment and contamination are contained and prevented Read more

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Cole Bay:---- On Friday the 2nd of July the Director of the Sint Maarten Nature Foundation Tadzio Bervoets and Nature Foundation Projects Officer Melanie Meijer Zu-Schlochtern met with the President of Parliament the Honourable Sarah Wescot-Williams to present her the Nature Foundation’s Document outlining the steps necessary to have Sint Maarten move towards a ban of single-use plastic bags Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:---  The Group 8 (formerly Grade 6) students of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Primary School visited Divi Little Bay Resort on Tuesday morning.

"Our students had a great experience visiting Divi Little Bay Resort as they were also briefed about the entire facility during a tour," said Stuart Johnson School Manager.

This field trip was coordinated by group 8 Tr Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The fourth phase of the Backstreet repairs will commence on June 14th, 2017. The fourth phase starts from Kortesteeg to Weduwensteeg and completion will take approximately two weeks depending on the weather and how many persons request connection to the sewage line.

Asphalt will be poured until Weduwensteeg. After that point, the road will be leveled by the repairing of sections of bricks until the end of Backstreet. Subsequently, road markings will be painted, the curbs will be painted black and white and the bus stops will be painted yellow Read more

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Bute Takes On A Division 1 University

PHILIPSBURG – For the first time in history, St. Maartener Shemar Deion Bute has been drafted to a Division 1 school.

Bute, a graduate of Tallahassee Community College (TCC) will be attending Connecticut Central State University (CCSU) in the Fall of 2017. He currently plays center, but will be a forward at CCSU. Bute is a graduate of St. Maarten Academy and was awarded Athlete of the Year.

Bute is a second-year participant on Tallahassee Community College men’s basketball team Read more

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Minister Of Ecys Silveria Jacobs Flag Day 2017 Message

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — The St. Maarten flag symbolizes the qualities we should represent as a Nation. Our flag represents the unity and love we should have for human kind, the strength and courage we should represent as a land and the appreciation we should have for our ecosystem and those that inhabit it.

We must contribute to preserving St Read more

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Exclusive:One Year Since Dbm Tendering Was Done For New General Hospital And Still No Financing Or Business Plan.

PHILIPSBURG: --- Patients on St. Maarten have to remain much longer on the waiting list and continue to travel overseas for much needed medical care as the company charged with obtaining the finances ($65M) is nowhere close to finding financiers even though it has been one year now since the bidding process took place and INSO won the disputed contract.
It is not yet comprehensible how SZV could hire a KPMG and is paying them hundreds of thousands of dollars per year and these so called professionals did not even secure a business plan and or financiers prior to putting the project on the bid.
One would think that anyone who wants to construct a building or any project would ensure they have the monies in place prior to hiring contractors that can take the government of St Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The Home Repair project designed to assist the most vulnerable in our community to live in decent homes was launched Monday, June 12th. The Department of Community Development, Family & Humanitarian Affairs (CDFHA), Youth Affairs, contractors, and students have all come together in a win, win, win the project to benefit the community. The students will gain valuable work experience that will equip them with valuable experience to enter the labor market as a skilled worker Read more

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Minister Lee: Sharing Best And Worst Practices

PHILIPSBURG – Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor Emil Lee addressed the media in Wednesday’s, June 7, Council of Ministers Press Briefing.

He made a brief statement about the “Taste of the Caribbean” this past week, which is a CHTA event in Miami. Florida, which is their chief or Caribbean hospitality industry exchange forum Read more

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Minister Jacobs: A Labor Dispute Is Not One In Which Ministers Can Become Involved

PHILIPSBURG – Minister of Education, Culture, Youth, and Sports Silveria Jacobs addressed members of the media in Wednesday’s, June 7, Council of Ministers Press Briefing.

On issues pertaining to her Ministry, she first congratulated Milton Peters College (MPC) 3 on 3 basketball teams, who travelled last Sunday to the Netherlands to compete in the Olympic Moves competition in Amsterdam Read more

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Minister Gibson: We Are Not Producing Sufficient Revenues To Cover The Needs Of All Ministries

 

PHILIPSBURG – Minister of Finance Richard Gibson Sr. addressed members of the press in Wednesday’s, June 7, Council of Minister’s Press Briefing.

He announced that the Moody’s report is out and had been published. The Moody’s report is a tool for international investors and others to be able to evaluate the obligations that St Read more

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Why We Need To Save Our Ocean Now – Not Later

UNITED NATIONS – What if the blue fades away as seawaters become brown, coral reefs become white as marine grasslands wither and life below water vanishes?

This is already happening at a staggering rate. It’s a lose-lose: for all people and for the planet.

Fish stocks are declining. Around 80 percent of fishing is either collapsing or just fully exploited. The ocean is also being polluted at an alarming rate Read more

Panos Caribbean Disappointed By Us Move To Exit Paris Agreement

KINGSTON, Jamaica – PANOS Caribbean has expressed deep disappointment at news that the United States is to turn its back on the historic Paris Agreement.

“There is no question that Panos Caribbean — an organisation that has worked tirelessly in the interest of advancing public education on climate change and enabling communities to have an informed response to the phenomena — is deeply disappointed at the U.S Read more

** Update # 2** Four Suspects In Police Custody After Failed Scotiabank Robbery

UPDATE: POLICE REPORT

Armed robbery at Scotia Bank 4 arrested

This morning Friday June 9th at approximately 09.00 a.m. the 911 Emergency Dispatch received several calls of an armed robbery at Scotia Bank in Simpson Bay involving several men. The calls which came in also gave descriptions of the suspects and the type of vehicles they were driving in.

Immediately several police patrols were sent to investigate what had taken place Read more

Is Parliament Boycotting The Code Of Ethics?

In addition to boycotting the establishing of the Integrity Chamber, Parliament appears to also be boycotting the formalization of a code of conduct.

Last week, the Chairlady of Parliament had to cancel the meeting of the Central Committee because there was no quorum when the second agenda point, namely a parliamentary code of conduct, was to be discussed. Isn’t it odd that there was a quorum for the first agenda point i.e. the Anti-Poverty Platform, but after a short break, only seven members of parliament remained for the continuation of this meeting!

Despite the Chairlady’s request for at least one member to come back inside the meeting hall and despite the official thirty minutes wait to see if any of the MPs outside of the meeting hall would adhere to her request, the meeting had to be called off, due to a lack of quorum Read more

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Us Embassy Revokes Government Minister’S Visa

BELMOPAN, Belize – The US Embassy here has cancelled the diplomatic and tourist visas of Transport Minister Edmond Castro.

But Prime Minister Dean Barrow has brushed aside calls for him to dismiss Castro over the cancellation.

Barrow told reporters that he had seen a letter sent to the minister by the US Embassy and that “there is no indication of any reason for the revocation of the visas, except that the minister declined to come in when invited to do so to discuss the whole Read more