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Port welcomes two-millionth passenger on New Year’s Eve

POINTE BLANCHE--Port St. Maarten has announced that on New Year's Eve, it welcomed the historical two-millionth cruise passenger. By the last day of the year, the country had received approximately 2,000,864 cruise passengers.

John and Marleen Tharpe and their three granddaughters had been on-board the Oasis of the Seas and were selected by newly instated Minister of Tourism Claret Connor at Dr Read more

>On behalf of the National Alliance Board and membership, I hereby extend gratitude to our father God for safe passage including all the blessings and challenges of 2014. It is with this same attitude of gratitude that we wish the entire population of St. Maarten a blessed and loving 2015, a year in which we can renew our resolve to collectively take St. Maarten forward.
Heartfelt greetings of Hope, Faith and Perseverance to those who have experienced serious challenges during the past year and praying that the coming year will see us all making strides towards success, happiness, prosperity and the strength to deal with adversity.
May 2015 be deemed the year of Volunteerism, a year in which all persons within our community realizes his/her own responsiblity and ability to affect true change on St Read more

Minister Connor: Private sector, NGO’s and service are vital for tangible economic growth.

>PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Tourism & Economic Affairs Claret Connor says that in the first few months of 2015, Government will share many ideas and initiatives to trigger tangible economic growth and that most of these initiatives will be done in collaboration with the Private sector and Non-government organizations (NGOs) with a strong focus on service.

In addressing the public for the first time since being sworn in, the Minister said he looks forward to starting his tenure with renewed passion and vision that will hopefully effect sustainable economic growth for our country and a better quality of life for all.

"As many would agree, any notable advancement for our country and our livelihood, is contingent on our country's economic development Read more

Port St. Maarten hits historical two millionth cruise passenger mark on New Year’s Eve.

>POINT BLANCHE:--- Port St. Maarten on New Year's Eve, Wednesday, December 31st, 2014, welcomed the historical two (2) millionth cruise passenger in 50-years of cruising. The country at the end of 2014 received for the entire year approximately 2,000,864 cruise passengers.

Family John and Marleen Tharpe along with their three granddaughters, passengers onboard the Oasis of the Seas, were selected by Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport & Telecommunications Hon. Claret Connor on Wednesday, December 31st, 2014 at the Dr Read more

Remembering The Late Vance James Jr.

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - It was on January 1st 2008, residents woke up to the sad news of the passing of former Commissioner and Island Council Member in the then island territory of St. Maarten, Vance James Jr.

He was 59 years old.

The late Vance James was also the managing director of the Voice of St Read more

Up Leader Mp Hon. Theo Heyliger New Year's Message - We Are A Resilient Nation And Proud Caribbean People

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - My Fellow Sint Maarteners,

Today marks January 1st, 2015. The birth of a New Year has taken place. At this time, everybody has prepared their New Year's resolutions on what they would like to accomplish during 2015. As Leader of the UP Party, I have also prepared some resolutions of what I would like to see accomplished for the people of this great country of ours.

Without a doubt, the year 2014 has been a year of challenges for some, but also a positive year for others Read more

Merchants Association

President of the Merchants Association of Marigot René Mathon (left) and Treasurer Philippe Morel.

Read more

Gumbs: Economy a priority in 2015

PHILIPSBURG--The implementation of "deliberate and integrated policies like the counterpart policy, employability through training and skill building for youth and adults, strengthening workplace compliance and formalization of the informal economy that compliment economic growth and reduce unemployment in order to create sustainable development" are top priorities for the Gumbs Cabinet in 2015.

Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs, in his early New Year's message: "The list of priorities is not a short one Read more

Person of the Year

French-side entrepreneur perseveres in difficult times

MARIGOT--For many people Marigot always had the potential to be the more attractive capital of the island and still has, to paraphrase a Kia commercial, "the power to surprise."

After all what could be more enticing to the vacationer than a little corner of France tucked away in the Caribbean, a sea front town with quaint streets, outdoor cafés, markets, shopping, the classic French boulangeries, fine restaurants , the ambiance, the savoir faire? Blend all of this with Caribbean culture and it should be a recipe for success.

The French-side enjoyed its heyday in the 80s and 90s with an up-market clientele, and Americans got a "good bang for their buck" against the franc Read more

Sportsperson of the Year

Rene Leveret

Professional baseball player Rene Leveret of South Reward is The Daily Herald’s Sportsman of the Year for 2014.  Leveret is not only an athlete; he is an unofficial ambassador for the Friendly Island, a role model and a true competitor. The first baseman who also can play left field signed a five-year deal with the Twins just a few months before his 18th birthday in 2003.
  His pro career started that year in the Dominican Republic summer league. Leveret played in 66 games Read more

Country cannot balance budget yet new staff hired. (UPDATED)

style="text-align: center;">Did Government cancel their contract with Cable TV for Wednesday? Is the media being muzzled?

PHILIPSBURG:--- The newly installed Gumbs cabinet has taken some radical decisions as to how they intend to deal with members of the media in the future. A press release from Gumbs press secretariat states that the Government of St. Maarten is the last county to establish a press secretariat, a department they said all other Caribbean nations such as St. Kitts have.
Having read the press release sent out by the press secretariat makes us wonder if St Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- As the yearly challenge comes around to select the person of year, this year was not as challenging as it was in the past years, simply because the candidate that was selected made the headlines both locally and internationally more than any other person on St. Maarten. While being in politics for half of his life, during the entire time he was in opposition for a mere 18 months.
That person is none other than Theodore Heyliger who had over 18 years to make this sunshine city really shine Read more

Prime Minister Lights Fireworks At Court House Tuesday

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Prime Minister of Sint Maarten the Honorable Marcel Gumbs was invited on Tuesday by the staff of the Court House, to symbolically resume a tradition that has been put aside over the last few years.

This was the lighting of a string of fireworks to close off the working year.

Court House staff welcomed the Prime Minister with snacks and hugs and said the two-minute fireworks presentation was simply the resumption of something many businesses on Frontstreet used to do.

With all safety precautions in place, the Prime Minister lit the string of fireworks Read more

Peace concert and fireworks on the Marigot waterfront

MARIGOT--The Collectivité in collaboration with artists association Kalaboom Team will organise a grand concert on the Marigot waterfront on Thursday, January 1, 2015, from 6:00pm to 11:00pm.

The Peace Concert will feature a number of artists including Akoustyle, DJ Outkast, Dutty Sham, Marc G Kalaboom DJS, DJ Biggers, N.I.A., Jackson, Red Eye Crew, King Vers, Oswald, Patou, Shanda Webster, Jahneral Blunty, Odd Brothers, Tamalia Theo, Anais Dancers, and more.

At 9:00pm precisely there will be a fireworks display to usher in the New Year Read more

Motor vehicle inspections at Little League Stadium

POND ISLAND--The location for motor vehicle inspection for 2015 licence plates has changed to the St. Maarten Little League Stadium parking lot, located next to the Carnival Village on Soualiga Road, Pond Island. The location up to now has been the nearby parking lot behind the new Government Administration Building, also on Pond Island.

Inspection will take place between 9:00am and 11:30am Monday through Friday.

The announcement comes from the Inspectorate of Economic Affairs which operates under the Ministry Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication (TEATT), and applies to holders of bus, taxi, tours (T plates) and unscheduled transportation (G plates) permits.

According to a TEATT press release, the inspection will check that permit holders meet several key requirements such as third party liability insurance which should be a minimum of NAf Read more

Country cannot balance budget yet new staff hired.

style="text-align: center;">Did Government cancel their contract with Cable TV for Wednesday? Is the media being muzzled?

PHILIPSBURG:--- The newly installed Gumbs cabinet has taken some radical decisions as to how they intend to deal with members of the media in the future. A press release from Gumbs press secretariat states that the Government of St. Maarten is the last county to establish a press secretariat, a department they said all other Caribbean nations such as St. Kitts have.
Having read the press release sent out by the press secretariat makes us wonder if St Read more

Answers Will Have To Wait Until Mid-January: Parliament Wants Clarity About Housing Foundation

St. Maarten – Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs answered the call to appear in Parliament as the acting minister of public housing within 72 hours after he was sworn in on Friday. Members of Parliament appreciated that, even though Gumbs sent them on their way with a flea in their ear, after listening to questions about the chaos of the St. Maarten Housing Development foundation for more than two hours.

The minister brought to mind the words he spoke on Friday in the constituting meeting where his team officially took over the reins: “The country needs tranquility, stability, civility and prosperity.”

Furthermore, Gumbs noted: “Integrity has been a buzz word this year Read more

Is the Dutch government guilty by association?

Dear Editor,

Now that the dust has blown over, we finally have a government even though the people didn't vote for them. The Kingdom Council of Ministers indirectly appoints a cabinet for St. Maarten, first time in the history of the kingdom, with the blessing of the leader of the UP, Mr. Theodore Heyliger.

The leader of the UP, MP Theodore Heyliger succumb to the pressure of the Dutch government by first withdrawing his name as a candidate for Prime Minister of St Read more

Editorial - Do what it has to

A press release by new Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs in today’s paper reminds civil servants that they are expected to report for work on Friday, January 2. The recently-installed Council of Ministers decided last week not to grant the day after New Year’s Day as an extra day off.

Publicly announcing such is highly necessary, because it had become almost a custom to give days off for dates sandwiched between public holidays and the weekend, seemingly without much regard for the loss of productivity and lack of service to the population.

Moreover, many would tend to stay home even when no such permission was granted Read more

Ministers to now speak via press secretary, weekly briefings ended

PHILIPSBURG--The recently installed Marcel Gumbs Cabinet appears to have erected a wall between itself and the press by establishing a “Press Secretariat” via which all ministers will communicate to the public. The live weekly Council of Ministers press briefing has been cancelled in favour of the new press secretary holding ad hoc briefings to tell the press what ministers have been working on.

The new Press Secretariat is led by former journalist Michael Granger, now press secretary to Prime Minister Gumbs Read more

Civil servants to report to work on January 2

PHILIPSBURG--The new Council of Ministers decided last week not to give government workers an extra day off on January 2, the day after New Year's Day.

As a result, all civil servants are expected to report to work on Friday, January 2, a press release stated. January 2, the release added, is not a public holiday.

New Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs urged civil servants who would like an extra day off to enjoy a long weekend to seek and request approval for a vacation day via their department heads.

He said 2015, from day one, is "a crucial year for St Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The leader of the UP, MP Theodore Heyliger succumb to the pressure of the Dutch government by first withdrawing his name as a candidate for Prime Minister of St. Maarten, a position that he stated during the campaign that he was ready and able to take on Read more

All Civil Servants to Report to Work on Friday January 2nd, 2015.

>PHILIPSBURG:--- All civil servants are expected to report to work on Friday, January 2. The Council of Ministers took a decision last week not to grant government's personnel the extra day off following New Year's day. This day is not a public holiday. However, Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs encourages those civil servants who would like an extra day off to enjoy another long weekend, to request and seek approval for a vacation day via their department heads Read more

Lenny Preist Says Up Leader Bends Under Dutch Pressure

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - The leader of the UP, MP Theodore Heyliger succumb to the pressure of the Dutch government by first withdrawing his name as a candidate for Prime Minister of St. Maarten, a position that he stated during the campaign that he was ready and able to take on.

The fact that he has not made himself available to assume the leadership of this country and to lead the government we consider this an act of treason Read more