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Bouyon for Dominica Benefit Concert this coming Saturday

MARIGOT--The Dominica Foundation of St. Maarten/St. Martin will present the Bouyon for Dominica Benefit Concert this coming Saturday, October 3, to raise funds for the stricken nature island in its post-Erika aftermath.

The much anticipated concert with popular artistes from Dominica and St. Maarten/St. Martin will be held at Festival Village, Philipsburg, from 4:00pm to 3:00am.

The press conference on Monday not only announced the concert but also showed a preview of a documentary film made by MSR Cable TV cameraman Kitian Francis who went to Dominica with St Read more

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Gumbs stressed need for good relations during visit

THE HAGUE--St. Maarten Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs is satisfied with his first working visit to the Netherlands. “I got the message clearly across to the ministers that we want good relations and that the attitude of the Netherlands is not conducive to solid relations in the Kingdom.”

Gumbs’ main reason for paying an official visit to the Netherlands for the first time since his appointment in December 2014 was the invitation to attend final event of the 200th anniversary of the Dutch Kingdom which took place in Amsterdam on Saturday.

While in the Netherlands, Gumbs also made use of the opportunity to have a meeting with several of the Dutch Ministers, the Council of State and the Presidents of the First and Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament.

“It was a good week with good meetings,” he told The Daily Herald on Saturday, one day before travelling on to New York where he will join the Kingdom delegation for the United Nations’ General Assembly.

Gumbs said that he had made clear from the moment the current government took office that St Read more

CFT says ‘no’ to Government’s NAf. 25M budget amendment

PHILIPSBURG--It's a clear "no" from the Committee for Financial Supervision CFT to the Marcel Gumbs Cabinet on its proposed NAf. 25 million increase of the 2015 budget. The pending budget amendment seeks to move the total budget amount from NAf Read more

No autonomous authority for Dutch police in St. Maarten

THE HAGUE--The Dutch National Police will not have autonomous authority or tasks in St. Maarten. Dutch police officers, who will be dispatched to St. Maarten to strengthen the law enforcement sector, will be added to the Detective Cooperation Team RST under the existing legal framework.

Dutch Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Ronald Plasterk stated this on Thursday in response to written questions of Members of the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament Wassila Hachchi and Magda Berndsen-Jansen of the Democratic D66 Party.

Hachchi and Berndsen-Jansen sought clarity on August 20, following media reports on the visit of National Police Chief Gerard Bouman to St Read more

Maria Plantz tipped as country’s CFT rep

PHILIPSBURG--Committee for Financial Supervision CFT will soon have a member from St. Maarten. Tipped for the post is Corporate Legal Expert Maria van der Sluijs-Plantz.

The St. Maartener, who lives in the Netherlands, has already served the country as the vice chairwoman of the first Corporate Governance Council (CGC) that was established in 2010. She serves as Vice Chairman of Strategic Development at TMF Group Holding BV, a company that focuses on corporate compliance. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

CFT Chairman Age Bakker said in a press conference on Thursday that a nominee to fill the vacant St Read more

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Regina LaBega asked to vacate airport post

AIRPORT--Princess Juliana International Airport SXM Managing Director Regina LaBega reportedly has been given eight weeks to vacate her post at the facility.

LaBega did not respond to an e-mail seeking a comment on the matter last night.

The Daily Herald understands that there were issues in connection with her screening by the national security service.

This newspaper also was told by a reliable source that Labega apparently was the only director of a Government-owned company who had been reluctant earlier this year to submit herself to the screening, which is now mandatory Read more

Editorial - Costly oversight

The answers on the settlement between the Harbour Group of Companies and Zebec provided to Parliament on Tuesday afternoon were to the point and clear. Deputy Prime Minister Dennis Richardson, assisted by Port St. Maarten Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mark Mingo, said there was nothing sinister about the matter and it basically boiled down to a dispute over giving further content to a general property lease agreement for a Dutch Village to be built by the developers of Blue Mall.

The latter’s interpretation of the deal was not deemed favourable for the Harbour, particularly its separate arrangement with Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (RCCL) that initiated an own US $100-150 million venture, including a hotel near the area in question Read more

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Registry to be made for access to ‘foreign’ birth certificates

PHILIPSBURG--One of the great hurdles faced by people born outside of St. Maarten – acquiring certified copies of birth and other certificates with vital statistics from their country of origin – may soon become a thing of the past thanks to a motion tabled by independent Member of Parliament (MP) Leona Marlin-Romeo that was accepted unanimously by Parliament on Thursday afternoon.

The motion sets the Marcel Gumbs Cabinet to work on the establishment of “an Integral Copy Registry.”

The registry not only will make life easier for Dutch citizens, but will generate additional funds for Government’s coffers Read more

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MPs pass motion to make English ‘mother tongue’

PHILIPSBURG--Minister of General Affairs Marcel Gumbs and Minister of Education Rita Bourne-Gumbs have sixty days to present a plan to Parliament to establish English as "the first and mother tongue" of the country.

This was the instruction given to Government via a unanimously adopted motion that was tabled in Parliament on Thursday by Democratic Party (DP) leader Member of Parliament (MP) Sarah Wescot-Williams.

The motion also instructs government to develop "a plan of approach to gradually introduce the use of the mother tongue as the first official language of St Read more

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Sarah: No 'earth-shattering' plans in governor's speech

PHILIPSBURG--There was "nothing earth-shattering" in Governor Eugene Holiday's speech about government's plans for the 2015-2016 parliamentary year, but it was heartening to see that the Marcel Gumbs Cabinet is "making use of the goodwill and leadership" created by the former government in the region and further afield, said Democratic Party (DP) leader Member of Parliament (MP) Sarah Wescot-Williams on Monday.

The former prime minister and her fraction's advisor Emil Lee called on government at their bi-weekly press briefing to continue with the National Development Plan (NDP) and were happy to note that government, based on the governor's speech, was still keeping the plan for which a lot of time and money has already been invested.

While the governor's speech was "short on specific," Wescot-Williams hopes to gain more insight into the plans for tax reform, when Finance Minister Martin Hassink is in Parliament this week to meet with Parliament's Permanent Committee for Finance.

DP has "ideas for changes" to the tax system, beginning with the often talked about simplification of the tax system, she said.

The party plans to put emphasis on an "economic reform agenda" that is necessary and that is needed to make tax reform workable.

Wescot-Williams expressed satisfaction that Parliament's Permanent Committee for Finance will finally handle the 2013 annual accounts of government-owned companies this week Read more

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Prime minister’s travel plans halt meeting about Zebec settlement

PHILIPSBURG--The “urgent” meeting of Parliament requested by opposition parties – National Alliance (NA) and Democratic Party (DP) about the out-of-court settlement reached by St. Maarten Harbour Group of Companies and developer Zebec has stalled before it could get started.

The meeting cannot be held this week, an official Parliament meeting week, because of an already packed Parliament schedule and due to the travel of Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs from Wednesday, September 16, until Sunday, September 27, 2015.

DP leader Member of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams is not amused that yet another urgently requested meeting of Parliament has not been scheduled by Parliament Chairman Dr Read more

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New judge welcomed

PHILIPSBURG--Judge Sander van Rijen was welcomed officially as a member of the Joint Court of Justice on Friday, amongst an array of Justice officials and dignitaries, including Acting Governor Reynold Groeneveldt, Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs, Justice Minister Dennis Richardson and President of Parliament Lloyd Richardson.

Van Rijen was introduced to the assembly by President of the Common Court of Justice Evert van der Poel.

Van der Poel, Attorney General Guus Schram and St Read more

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Ambassador Braakhuis discusses Cuba developments, possibilities

PHILIPSBURG--Dutch Ambassador to Cuba Norbert Braakhuis addressed a full room of attendees at University of St. Martin on Thursday night in an informative lecture focussing on the economic and political facets that have shaped Cuba, and what the cumulative changes the country has been experiencing and those it is expected to experience can mean for the Caribbean region.

A diverse group of stakeholders was in attendance, including ministers, Government officials, lawyers and key private sector leaders and representatives.

Braakhuis also announced that a Kingdom trade mission was planned and that he would facilitate local stakeholders in making connections there Read more

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Emmanuel calls out Dutch-side supermarkets on ‘price gouging’

~ Tags Super U prices as cheaper ~

PHILIPSBURG--The vastly cheaper prices for groceries at French-side supermarket Super U compared to large Dutch-side chain Le Grand Marché (LGM) has National Alliance Member of Parliament Christophe Emmanuel crying foul.

The MP, who said he was disgusted with price-gouging by supermarkets on the Dutch side, went on a price-comparison mission Thursday, buying comparative or same items at both supermarkets Read more

Government formulates a ‘Strategy for Growth’

PHILIPSBURG--The Marcel Gumbs Cabinet has formulated a “Strategy for Growth” with the aim to “generate additional revenues” for Government’s coffers to fund its policy agenda, Governor Eugene Holiday announced at the opening of the 2015-2016 Parliamentary Year on Tuesday.

The “strategy,” which appears to be rooted in increased tax compliance, not more taxes, was described by the Governor as a way to ensure compliance with the national ordinance on Government accounts and the Kingdom Law on financial supervision for Curaçao and St Read more

New ministers sworn in, Cabinet now complete

HARBOUR VIEW--Almost nine months after taking office, the Marcel Gumbs Cabinet now has the full complement of seven individual ministers with the taking of the oath before Governor Eugene Holiday of new Ministers Ernest Sams and Rafael Boasman. Also retaking the oath to match his newly-assigned ministry was Minister Claret Connor Read more

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Parliamentary Year opens on Tuesday

PHILIPSBURG--The 2015-2016 Parliamentary Year opens in Parliament House at 10:00am on Tuesday.

Governor Eugene Holiday will deliver his customary opening of the year speech outlining government's plans and programmes for the coming year.

Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs will be present for the ceremony with his cabinet as well as members of the high councils of state, the judiciary and other dignitaries.

Motorists and the public are reminded by Parliament that Wilhelminastraat (in front of the Parliament House) will be closed on Monday, September 7, from 3:00pm to 12:00am in connection with a dress rehearsal of uniformed services for the opening of the new parliamentary year.

Back Street and Front Street will be closed on Tuesday from 6:00am to 2:00pm.

The public session will be live on St Read more

Editorial - All hands on deck

Today's news that the screening of two new prospective ministers was completed with success (see related article) is most welcome. Rumours had surfaced that this might not be the case for at least one of the candidates, which of course would have led to even more delay in the proposed changes.

Once formalised, the appointment of Raphael Boasman as Public Health, Social Development and Labour Minister as well as Ernest Sams as Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication (TEATT) Minister will bring the cabinet up to its normal seven members, one for each ministry Read more

Sarah determined to get timeshare law moving

PHILIPSBURG--Too much time has been wasted on moving forward with the draft timeshare legislation while the country’s reputation has sustained damage. For those reasons, Democratic Party (DP) leader Member of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams is determined to see the draft initiative law to protect timeshare owners and buyers that her party proposed in the last parliamentary terms moving in full swing Read more

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