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SCDF seeking to break free from ‘vicious cycle of debt’

~ Structural change crucial, hard data now the focus ~

PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) said on Thursday that the event threatens to become trapped in "a vicious cycle of debt" that must be broken with decisive business decisions and initiatives.

"After all the revelling and good times the general population had for what many have called the best Carnival ever, the festival is still a very expensive affair that continues to come up short financially," an SCDF press release read.

SCDF, a private foundation, had said for months that it planned on transitioning to a new business structure after Carnival 2015 to ensure the financial viability of St Read more

Sarah to lobby opposition for audit chamber investigation

PHILIPSBURG--Democratic Party (DP) leader Member of Parliament (MP) Sarah Wescot-Williams said she will be lobbying her fellow opposition members to bring about an investigation by the General Audit Chamber into the security contract between St Read more

Delegation for IPKO departs for the Netherlands on Friday

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – From May 27-29, 2015 delegations from the Parliaments of the Netherlands, Curaçao, Aruba and Sint Maarten will be meeting in The Hague, the Netherlands for the Inter-parliamentary Kingdom Consultations (IPKO).

The four parliamentary delegations will be discussing a number of issues that include the following: feedback from workgroup education (especially where DUO-study financing and repayment is concerned), workgroup energy matters, health care and the Health Care Conference to take place in Aruba June 1-4, 2015, workgroup youth affairs, workgroup economic opportunities, workgroup integrity and workgroup discrimination.

Integrity, dispute regulation and the draft initiative Kingdom Law to amend articles 14 and 38 of the Kingdom Charter of (former) Second Chamber Member Van Oven are also on the agenda to be discussed Read more

Editorial - Perception counts

That University of St. Martin (USM) could use more support is obvious after Wednesday's meeting with Parliament's Permanent Committee on Education and Youth. With a reported average annual loss of US $159,000 over the past five years the institution of higher learning's financial situation is clearly unsustainable.

Government reportedly already covers 35 per cent of the expenditures with study financing and subsidy. As the latter already went up from NAf Read more

EXCLUSIVE: GEBE Supervisory Board got three separate reports on COO and CFO

style="text-align: center;">Supervisory Board soon to take decision on how they will deal with CFO.

PHILIPSBURG:--- The supervisory board of GEBE was presented with three reports on May 13th 2015. The first report dealt with the misuse of GEBE's credit cards that were allotted to the company's Chief Operations Officer (COO) Romelio Maduro and the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Rene Gartner. Based on the contents of the first report which addressed the misuse of the credit cards the COO Romelio Maduro used the company's credit card on an open tab at the cigar lounge and at several brothels on the island.
While Gartner used the credit cards to purchase airline tickets, and a satellite for his office Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- Taking the first step towards articulating Sint Maarten's national economic vision, the Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunication (TEATT) will be hosting a National Economic Summit to stimulate public engagement on Friday May 22nd at Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort, Casino and Spa.
Led by Minister of TEATT Hon. Claret Connor, the Summit is geared towards engaging the private sector for fruitful discussion Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- Representatives from the Parliament of Sint Maarten led by President Dr. Lloyd Richardson, recently returned from Panama after attending five-days of parliamentary sessions at the Parliament of Latin America (Parlatino).

The parliamentary delegation comprised of the President Hon. Dr. Lloyd Richardson, Members of Parliament (MPs) Hon Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:---- The University of St. Martin (USM) needs to become the national university of the country.

United People's (UP) party Member of Parliament (MP) Hon. Maurice Lake, who is a member of parliament's permanent Committee for Education, Culture, Youth and Sports Affairs (CECYSA), says, if Sint Maarten is really serious about education, priority has to be given to the development of USM as a national university.

During the CECYSA session in the House of Parliament on Wednesday, MP Lake posed a number of questions with respect to developments at USM and to the Minister of Education with respect to government's position regarding a number of areas.

"USM has developed very slowly, but not fast enough Read more

Tzu Chi Spreads Love At Triple Celebration Donates Relief Items To 100 Families

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - The St. Maarten Tzu Chi Foundation helped spread cheer on Sunday, May 10, when it held its annual triple celebration of Mother's Day, Tzu Chi Day and Buddha's Birthday.

During the ceremony, held at Tzu Chi's location on L.B. Scott Road, Tzu Chi helped persons in need by donating relief items to a total of 100 families. The 49 volunteers who participated in the exercise put their best foot forward to keep the 161 guests in attendance engaged during the event.

The triple celebration was preceded by a tour of the various sections at Tzu Chi Foundation Read more

George wants info about civil servants

PHILIPSBURG--National Alliance (NA) Member of Parliament George Pantophlet has written to Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs in his capacity as General Affairs Minister enquiring about a number of topics related to civil servants.

Pantophlet wants a list of the vacancies filled in the ministries during the past two years, the names of the people who have taken up those posts and whether they are on government contract or in permanent employment.

In the letter sent to Gumbs via Parliament Chairman Dr Read more

Still no consensus on dispute arrangement

THE HAGUE--The four countries of the Kingdom generally agree that the Council of State would be an ideal body to handle the dispute arrangement. However, the negotiations to reach an agreement have not been successful thus far.

Dutch Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Ronald Plasterk confirmed during a debate with the Permanent Committee for Kingdom Relations of the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament on Wednesday that no consensus had been reached on establishing a dispute arrangement Read more

USM in dire financial straits, suggests education surcharge

~ Govt to raise subsidy in 2016 ~

PHILIPSBURG--University of St. Martin (USM) outlined its dire financial situation on Wednesday, showing that the institution has been operating at an average deficit of some US $159,000 per annum over the past five years.

USM Manager of Finances and Operations Robert Budike painted the grim picture during a meeting of Parliament’s Permanent Committee on Education and Youth.

Budike suggested that an education surcharge similar to the St Read more

Delegation for IPKO departs for the Netherlands on Friday

>PHILIPSBURG:----  From May 27-29, 2015 delegations from the Parliaments of the Netherlands, Curaçao, Aruba and Sint Maarten will be meeting in The Hague, the Netherlands for the Inter-parliamentary Kingdom Consultations (IPKO).
The four parliamentary delegations will be discussing a number of issues that include the following: feedback from workgroup education (especially where DUO-study financing and repayment is concerned), workgroup energy matters, health care and the Health Care Conference to take place in Aruba June 1-4, 2015, workgroup youth affairs, workgroup economic opportunities, workgroup integrity and workgroup discrimination.
Integrity, dispute regulation and the draft initiative Kingdom Law to amend articles 14 and 38 of the Kingdom Charter of (former) Second Chamber Member Van Oven are also on the agenda to be discussed Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- Prime Minister Hon. Marcel Gumbs opened the 10th Session of the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Tsunami and Other Coastal Hazards Warning System for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions (ICG/CARIBE EWS-X) conference on Tuesday at Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort, Casino and Spa.
The Government of Sint Maarten is proud to host this important regional meeting that has brought together disaster management officials from across the region Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:---- Member of Parliament George Pantophlet has dispatched two letters to the Chairman of Parliament where he posed several questions regarding civil servants and other persons that currently working for the government of St. Maarten and those that have left. MP Pantophlet wants to know how many Ministries were filled in the last two years and by whom Read more

Family Reading Evening at the library

>PHILIPSBURG:---The Philipsburg Jubilee Library, in collaboration with the department of Social Services and Section Labor Market (SOD/SLM) have officially launched a new literacy program with a family reading evening that was held in the library. The family literacy evening was initiated to involve parents as well their children in a literacy event that is aimed toward promoting reading in general and encouraging parents to read to their children Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:---- Hon. Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs expresses his deepest sympathy on behalf of his family and the Government of Sint Maarten to his wife Irma Mulder-Beauperthuy, members of the family circle and friends of social/community-minded Frans Mulder who passed away over the weekend.

The Prime Minister pointed out that Mulder will be remembered for his contributions made to the Sint Maarten community especially to the While and Yellow Cross Foundation which he served for 35-years.

Mulder arrived on the island in the 1960s and established Sint Maarten as his home.

He built several businesses, and was a Managing Director of the former Spritzer and Fuhrman, and played a key role in the development of the former St Read more

Mp Lake Says Usm Has To Become National University For The Country

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten – The University of St. Martin (USM) needs to become the national university of the country.

United People's (UP) party Member of Parliament (MP) Hon. Maurice Lake, who is a member of parliament's permanent Committee for Education, Culture, Youth and Sports Affairs (CECYSA), says, if Sint Maarten is really serious about education, priority has to be given to the development of USM as a national university.

During the CECYSA session in the House of Parliament on Wednesday, MP Lake posed a number of questions with respect to developments at USM and to the Minister of Education with respect to government's position regarding a number of areas.

"USM has developed very slowly, but not fast enough Read more

Delegation For Ipko Departs For The Netherlands On Friday

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – From May 27-29, 2015 delegations from the Parliaments of the Netherlands, Curaçao, Aruba and Sint Maarten will be meeting in The Hague, the Netherlands for the Inter-parliamentary Kingdom Consultations (IPKO).

The four parliamentary delegations will be discussing a number of issues that include the following: feedback from workgroup education (especially where DUO-study financing and repayment is concerned), workgroup energy matters, health care and the Health Care Conference to take place in Aruba June 1-4, 2015, workgroup youth affairs, workgroup economic opportunities, workgroup integrity and workgroup discrimination.

Integrity, dispute regulation and the draft initiative Kingdom Law to amend articles 14 and 38 of the Kingdom Charter of (former) Second Chamber Member Van Oven are also on the agenda to be discussed Read more

Prime Minister Gumbs Expresses Condolences To The Families Of The Late Frans Mulder

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – Hon. Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs expresses his deepest sympathy on behalf of his family and the Government of Sint Maarten to his wife Irma Mulder-Beauperthuy, members of the family circle and friends of social/community-minded Frans Mulder who passed away over the weekend.

The Prime Minister pointed out that Mulder will be remembered for his contributions made to the Sint Maarten community especially to the While and Yellow Cross Foundation which he served for 35-years.

Mulder arrived on the island in the 1960s and established Sint Maarten as his home.

He built several businesses, and was a Managing Director of the former Spritzer and Fuhrman, and played a key role in the development of the former St Read more

Putting people first focus of ICG/CARIBE EWS Meeting

 PHILIPSBURG--The need for a paradigm shift in disaster risk management to “put people at the centre” of preparedness, “instead of the last” was expounded on by Christa Hillebrandt-Andrade, Chairperson of the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Tsunami and Other Coastal Hazards Warning System for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions ICG/CARIBE EWS-X.

Hillebrandt-Andrade, speaking Tuesday morning at the opening in the group’s three-day meeting at Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort and Spa, added that the community must be kept “front and centre” in preparedness, especially with more and more people moving to coastal areas.

“Tsunami is no longer a forgotten danger in the Caribbean,” she said, calling for “the development of a culture of evacuation” to reduce risks in times of disaster Read more

Foster homes outline challenges to MPs

~Midwives withholding birth paper a concern~

PHILIPSBURG--Midwives withholding the birth certificates of babies, whose parents did not pay for the delivery was one of several concerns expressed by representatives of three children's homes during a meeting of Parliament's Permanent Committee of Justice on Tuesday morning.

Representatives of the homes outlined the challenges that children in foster care, who are without the birth paper, face during the meeting. I Can Children's Home President Cassandra Gibbs said there were two undocumented children in I Can who do not have birth certificates, as these were withheld by the midwife for lack of payment for the delivery.

She said not having a birth certificate is an impediment to many things for these children Read more

Judge pressures State Dept. on Clinton emails release

WASHINGTON--A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the U.S. State Department to produce a plan to release batches of Hillary Clinton's emails from her time there, raising the prospect of months of drip-by-drip disclosures that could plague her presidential campaign.
  U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras ordered the State Department to prepare a timetable by next week for the rolling release of the 55,000 pages of emails sent and received by Clinton, according to a court document. It was a rebuke to the State Department, which had said on Monday it might need until January 2016 to produce the emails.
  Republicans want the emails to be made public soon to cast more light on Clinton's term as secretary of state from 2009 to 2013, a time when the United States struggled to reset relations with Russia and develop a strategy for Syria's civil war.
  The judge also told the State Department to present a schedule in the coming days for releasing 300 Clinton emails related to U.S Read more

Mindful moments on raging children

Dear Editor,

Be Kind; Everyone You Meet is Fighting a Hard Battle ~ Plato.

When one practices mindfulness, one practices feeling the body as it experiences emotions. Emotions are felt in its most miniscule form. Anxiety, for example, is a very uncomfortable emotion to bear; it is also a precursor to rage. Any outburst of a raging scene starts with the seed of anxiety, so fear.

In certain societies, rage is naturally accepted as response and reaction to situations that arise Read more