Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
Dear Editor,
In a democracy, elections are the main catalyst for change or status quo in most conservative societies. It seems extremely difficult to accurately describe the stagnation here in what we like to call "country St. Maarten". Not so long ago, a few months short of a year, everyone was euphoric during the elections, while predicting a victory for their colour/party. And as elections go in St. Maarten, the last one was no different with the candidates doing their utmost to convince the voters, and of course, the unintended character assassinations. Sometimes it resembles an offshoot of our largest national fête (Carnival). The august 2014 elections will go down in history as the most disastrous and problematic for my people; some even argued it has left us devoid of initiatives or ideas.
This all started when after the election the leader of the largest party (UP) T. Heyliger living up to his campaign promise, declared he would lead the incoming government as Prime Minister. If my memory serves me right, on no less than three occasions Massa made clear he wasn't having any of it. In first instance, no less than Prime Minister Rutte declared he won't accept Heyliger as Prime Minister.
Then a message passed on by the Dutch spy institution in Philipsburg said they were emphatic about not having Heyliger or Duncan in any cabinet in Philipsburg. It can only be a spy organization for if the governor represents the interest of the crown, why do they need a representative in Philipsburg. Anyway later it was supported and seconded by the second chamber; the Bosmans, Van Raaks and the like. What is very peculiar is how they have without any resistance or concern from my people, or the other countries in the Kingdom been allowed to overturn the wishes of the populace, and basically institute a government of their liking under duress.
For all those Kingdom lovers, please explain what part of this action can be found in a democracy. We are so willing to appease and placate the colonial masters that we even accept a so-called Kingdom government and Kingdom parliament. It is the norm that the power/authority to govern a people is derived from the people themselves. And normally government is supervised and scrutinized by an elected parliament. It would seem that democracy is on its head in the Dutch Kingdom, for we don't and have never voted for a party in the Netherlands, so there is not one parliamentarian in that country that has a right to speak on our behalf.
And it stands to reason that the appointment of ministers doesn't reflect any input from us, so they dictatorially deciding what is good or not in the best interest of us seems a bit ludicrous and farfetched. As it concerns the Minister Plenipotentiary, this is simply a carry-over from colonial days and is designed to give the appearance of inclusion. In reality all they can do is present the position of the "countries in the Kingdom, which is usually ignored and mass does as he pleases.
I am reminded of a discussion we had in 2000 leading up to the referendum, when the supporters of the separate status, just like Aruba. were keen to point out the main reason for getting out of the Netherlands Antilles is that we only had three votes and Curacao did what they wanted. May we be so bold to enquire how many seats we have in the Dutch parliament and why we accept from the Dutch without input what we couldn't accept from Curacao? It is sometimes depressing to say I told you so when it concerns the future of your country and its people, but as we pointed out, then if we are not going to lead our people to total self- governance, we would do better staying in the Antilles.
It is amazing to see how we readily jump on the band wagon with the Dutch when they consider something important like the Free Zone, while the dispute resolution body is being fought for in our own best interest. Our people are crying out for leadership, not simply reaction to everything uttered in The Hague; may we find it under a rock or in the shade of a tree, but for God's sake, find it soon.
Elton Jones
