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EXCLUSIVE: --- GEBE Board asked to Resign --- UP Leader called GEBE board members and asked them to make their positions Available.

>PHILIPSBURG: --- Reliable information reaching SMN News states that the leader of the United Peoples Party Theodore Heyliger contacted each of the members of the Supervisory Board of GEBE and asked them to make their positions available Read more

Editorial - The sooner the better

It seems the Gumbs cabinet has become embroiled in separate disputes (see Friday paper) with the boards of two public-sector entities on decisions regarding their directors.

At utilities provider GEBE Romelio Maduro was suspended, placed on non-active duty and said not to be legally appointed in any function, despite the fact that Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs on behalf of the shareholder had informed the Supervisory Board recently that he couldn’t honour their request not to extend Maduro’s contract and in fact had decided to extend such for another two years pending an investigation.

At National Institute for Professional Advancement (NIPA) Education Minister Rita Bourne-Gumbs advised the board to reverse its earlier dismissal of director Vernon Richards for organising, allegedly without proper authorisation, an Open Day that the minister also attended.

The two cases are different in that GEBE is a state-owned company and NIPA a Government-subsidised foundation, but the similarity lies in the fact that their boards have a certain degree of statutory autonomy compared to, for example, Government departments Read more

Stakeholders reconvene on EVT Economic Framework

PHILIPSBURG--Stakeholders reconvened on Friday morning for a follow-up session on the draft National Economic Framework that was presented three weeks ago by the Department of Economic Affairs, Transportation and Telecommunication EVT.

The EVT team has been collecting and compiling feedback in the meantime and the goal of this second session was to share overall feedback and discuss goals, methods and avenues.

Along with taking additional feedback, one of the results of the meeting was the establishment of expert "sub-workgroups" for a number of sectors, with the aim of the groups being able to execute visions as outlined in an "holistic vision document" that would be preceded by sector-specific discussions and research between private and public bodies: telecommunications, tourism, marine, creative, agriculture, finance and real estate.

Through demand on the part of the audience, environment was also added to the list.

Robbie Ferron, one of the more vocal attendees, told Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication (TEATT) Claret Connor and the EVT team that he expected the "big hitters" in government as well as the private sector to join these groups.

"This is the chance to prove yourselves," he asserted, this sentiment in line with that of many stakeholders, of the private sector in particular, that the first session felt like a repeat of past, shelved initiatives.

The groups will be key to progress, according to TEATT Secretary-General Miguel De Weever, and will counteract the chance of the framework remaining unfulfilled as feared Read more

AUC wins tax appeal, NAf. 70 mil claim off

PHILIPSBURG--The former owner of American University of the Caribbean (AUC) at Cupecoy won its case against the Tax Inspectorate of St. Maarten before the Tax Court in Philipsburg on Thursday. The court ruled the appeal admissible and destroyed the decision to impose an additional profit tax assessment of 61.4 million guilders, plus 9.2 million in fines.

The additional assessment was issued on April 27, 2012, on 2011 profit tax of the company that is part of a group owned by a Cayman Islands-based holding Read more

Protests against cutting Statia Marine Park in half

~ Free-for-all in designated reserves ~

By Suzanne Koelega

THE HAGUE--The St. Eustatius National Marine Park has been reduced by a near 50 per cent through a decision of the St. Eustatius Government. Without the necessary control it basically means the end of the park which will now only consist of the Atlantic side of the island and the reserve at Gallows Bay to make way for the harbour. And, in absence of a legal status, local fishermen have started fishing in the reserves.

The Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) and affiliated nature organisations are extremely disappointed and had asked National Government Representative Gilbert Isabella earlier this week to annul the amendment to the local Maritime Environment Ordinance.

The reduction of the St Read more

Justice Minister asked to resign by US Party

PHILIPSBURG--United St. Maarten Party (USP) has requested that Justice Minister Dennis Richardson resign. The request was presented in a letter to the minister delivered on Friday afternoon.

Minister Richardson did not confirm to The Daily Herald whether he had received the letter. He said he was “not commenting” on internal coalition or political parties’ matters.

Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs has indicated already that should the Justice Minister be faced with any vote of no confidence in Parliament the entire cabinet also would resign Read more

India's economic data bring cheer

NEW DELHI--India's industrial production output grew more than expected in April, reaching a two-month high, and retail inflation edged up in May, easing concern over an economy facing the worst drought since 2009.
  Output at factories, mines and utilities grew at an annual rate of 4.1 percent in April, the fastest pace since February. That was higher than March's 2.5 percent growth and the 1.6 percent economists forecast in a Reuters poll.
  Consumer inflation in May rose to 5.01 percent from 4.87 percent in the previous month on higher energy costs Read more

‘Excusez-moi?’ – Muppet time for Astrid on Statia

Dear Editor,

"Statia needs me and I am now heading home!" With these words, Statia Commissioner of Finance Astrid McKenzie-Tatem stormed out of her meeting with the Dutch Government because of the imposition of higher financial supervision. It was all rather reminiscent of a Miss Piggy fight with Kermit the frog!

However, whereas the Muppets are puppets and we expect them to behave like puppets, politicians are not. But they do have a political stage. How you say something and how you do something is just as important as what you say and what you do.

In the case of our new Commissioner of Finance, she has done very little Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- The leader of the United Saint Maarten Party (USP) Frans Richardson hand delivered a letter to Minister of Justice Dennis Richardson on Friday when he met with him at his office around 1pm.
SMN News understands that the USP leader made clear that as a coalition partner he got that Ministry and since he formed part of the coalition he is not informed on how the Justice Ministry functions.
After the meeting with the Minister of Justice MP Frans Richardson showed up at the Government Administration Building where members of the coalition met.
Attending that meeting which lasted over three hours were the leader of the UPP Theodore Heyliger, MP Franklin Meyers, MP Silvio Master, MP Maurice Lake, MP Leona Marlin, MP Cornelius de Weever, and MP Johan Janchi Leonard.
Also in attendance was Minister of Justice Dennis Richardson and the other members of the Council of Ministers.
When the meeting ended all Members of Parliament left stating that nothing happened and that the coalition meeting was called to discuss the budget Read more

Statia Democratic Party Willing To Work With Govt. To Remove Higher Supervision Imposed By Holland

ORANJESTAD, St. Eustatius - The decision taken by the Kingdom government to impose higher supervision with immediate effect on the island of St. Eustatius was expected.

That is the view of Councilman of the Democratic Party, Nicholas Sneak.

Speaking to our news department, he stated that the Democratic Party sounded the alarm several months ago that this would have happened Read more

National Alliance Calls For Meeting Of Parliament To Address The Placing Of Gebe Coo On Inactive Duty

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - The decision of the Supervisory Board of Directors of N.V. GEBE to Chief Operations Officer (COO) Mr. Romelio Maduro on inactive duty, is a matter of concern for the National Alliance faction in the Parliament of St. Maarten.

The decision to place Mr. Maduro on inactive duty was announced Thursday by the attorney for the Supervisory Board of Directors Jairo Bloem.

In a statement signed by the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Directors N.V Read more

GEBE’s Maduro ‘suspended, placed on non-active duty’

PHILIPSBURG--In an unexpected statement to the press and in contrast to intentions expressed by Government, GEBE's Supervisory Board of Directors on announced Thursday evening that GEBE's Chief Operations Officer (COO) Romelio Maduro has been "suspended and placed on non-active duty" as of June 11.

The scanned document was signed by Supervisory Board of Directors Chairman Rene Richardson.

In introducing the statement, GEBE's attorney Jairo Bloem said, "The Supervisory Board of Directors of N.V Read more

Saba wants to host summit for Caribbean Netherlands

THE HAGUE--Saba has offered to host a political summit of the Caribbean Netherlands and the Netherlands in January 2016 to discuss the future of the islands, their relation with the Netherlands and how to achieve more self-reliance.

Saba Commissioner of Constitutional Affairs Chris Johnson launched his proposal for a summit which might be held in January 2016 after the completion of the evaluation during a meeting of the Executive Councils of Bonaire and St. Eustatius with the Second Chamber’s Permanent Committee for Kingdom Relations on Thursday.

Saba, but also Bonaire, wants to become more self-reliant and be more in charge of its own affairs Read more

Zaandam: The Hague, CFT, Island Governor at fault too

THE HAGUE--If the public entity St. Eustatius is given an instruction as the result of the island's precarious financial situation and alleged improper governance, then the Island Governor, the Committee for Financial Supervision CFT and the National Government Representative should be given one too, as these three entities failed their task to safeguard financial stability and good governance.

Statia Commissioner Reginald Zaandam of the UPC party stated this on Thursday in a reaction to the instruction the St Read more

British comedian buys time on Trinidad television to urge Warner to rat out FIFA

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad--British comedian John Oliver, the host of the HBO series "Last Week Tonight," purchased time on Trinidad television on Tuesday night to urge the indicted former FIFA vice president Jack Warner to keep a promise and tell all he knows about the organisation. This is according to a report from Caribbean News Now.

Warner bought time on the same channel TV6 last week to claim he had an "avalanche" of damning information about FIFA's corruption, following his arrest along with several other FIFA officials on bribery and fraud charges Read more

>Since the beginning of this week, military personnel has arrived on the islands of Sint Maarten, Saba and Statia. They are preparing for the annual hurricane relief exercise. Yesterday, the Commander Netherlands Forces in the Caribbean, commodore Hans Lodder, visited the support ship HNLMS Pelikaan and the operations room in the Asha Stevens Hillside Christian School.

Cooperation
“The military troops are here to support local authority in case of a hurricane passage or another disaster Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- Honorable Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs on Wednesday administered the oath to a number of civil servants in the A.C. Wathey Legislative Hall at the Government Administration Building.
Prime Minister Gumbs spoke to the civil servants about integrity and being productive while carrying out their duties to the nation.
The oath taking is part of the integrity compliance within the Personnel & Organization Department Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- The Supervisory board of directors of GEBE means business and they are sticking to the decision they have taken not to renew the contract  Romelio Maduro’s  as the Chief Financial Operations Officer of the Company.
Shortly after Maduro was officially informed by two of the board members in writing that he was not to be on the property as his contract expired on May 31st 2015, he retained attorney at law Peggy Ann Brandon to represent him. Not long after that the Prime Minister of St Read more

Up Party President To Discontinue Information Being Sent To "Slander Sites"

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - The board of the United People's (UP) Party does not support blatant misuse of the noble profession journalism by those who use journalism as a hobby to slander others rather than a profession to factually inform, educate and enlighten.

Journalism requires research, impartiality and care in its execution so that credibility is not questioned.

Operating on the fringe of fantasy, fabricating "news" and using the power of words in a deliberate, destructive manner, does not constitute good journalism and goes against the principle for fair reporting and presenting both sides of the story.

Slander sites do not reveal their sources therefore what is published cannot be considered credible.

Slander sites are being pushed by political forces with an agenda and do not care how it achieves its intended objectives, whether it's causing harm to the image of the country, whatever way possible this is the way they operate.

Many good, solid people of this community continue to have their name or institutions they are part of, slandered simply out of bias and obvious agendas.

These blogs do not enlighten and educate the population of the country, but only focuses on the UP Party Read more

Attempts To Quell Conflict At Nipa Underway

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - The level of concern with developments taking place at NIPA, the National Institute for Professional Advancement, is high.

Information reaching our newsroom paints a picture of conflict at the institution at a time when the institute is trying to move forward and attract more students. The conflict is said to exist between the board of the Institute which is headed by Drs. Marcella Hazel and Mr. Vernon Richards the Director.

The Minister of Education the Honorable Rita Bourn –Gumbs is said to be aware of the problem and so too is MP Christopher Emmanuel Read more

New NAPB President pledges to do utmost to represent members

~ New board, congress sworn in ~

PHILIPSBURG--Newly elected President of the Nationale Algemene Politie Bond (NAPB) St. Maarten police union Jeanine Peterson pledged to do her utmost to tackle the many issues affecting members.

Peterson made the statements shortly after being sworn in during a ceremony at the John Larmonie Center on Wednesday. Also sworn in were members of the union’s Board and Congress Read more

NASA responds to predictions of catastrophic asteroid impact and tsunami near Puerto Rico

LONDON, England--End-of-time predictors have claimed that a massive asteroid hurtling towards Earth will destroy civilisation as we know it in September.

They are predicting a cataclysmic event that will trigger a major earthquake and tsunami and will sound humanity’s death knell in just three months’ time, The Mirror reports.

The rapid proliferation of the prediction has now prompted the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to speak out and dismiss the theory as unfounded.

“NASA knows of no asteroid or comet currently on a collision course with Earth, so the probability of a major collision is quite small,” a NASA spokesperson said.

“In fact, as best as we can tell, no large object is likely to strike the Earth any time in the next several hundred years.”

Conspiracy theorists on numerous blogs and websites have come up with the period between September 22 and September 28 as the likely time frame for the “impending catastrophe.”

Some biblical theorists maintain that the events will initiate the Rapture and the start of the seven-year Tribulation.

Others believe the events will spark the emergence of the so-called Illuminati-sponsored New World Order (NWO), which will take charge of world affairs.

Despite NASA’s dismissal, the conspiracy theorists believe that governments of the world’s leading nations are aware of the “impending disaster” and are keeping the information secret to prevent mass panic.

Veterans Today reports that self-proclaimed prophet Reverend Efrain Rodriguez made the original prediction back in 2010 after getting a message from God.

According to Reverend Rodriguez, the asteroid will crash into the ocean off Puerto Rico during the night, triggering a massive earthquake and a tsunami that will advance at 400 miles per hour, destroying everything in its path.

The tsunami will go on to devastate the East Coast of the United States, Mexico, Central and South America, Rodriguez added, urging NASA to issue an alert “so people can be relocated from the areas that are to be affected.”

US-based Veterans Today noted that such a disaster was “not an end-of-the-world event, but one that would likely kill millions this side of the Atlantic and send the world economy into a tailspin.”

Meanwhile, although the latest claims of a killer asteroid are apparently unfounded, scientists have long said that these space rocks pose a major threat to Earth.

“There is an asteroid with our name on it and it will hit us,” Professor Brian Cox told Britain’s MailOnline.

Earth had a “near-miss” only a few months ago.

“We didn’t see it,” Professor Cox said Read more

Inter Generation Runners wins Semsamar relay race

MARIGOT—The new team Inter Generation Runners captained by Wilfred Sully won Sunday's 9th edition of the Semsamar Inter-Company relay race but did not beat last year's winning time.

Inter Generation were first in 2 hours 9:50, followed by the Gendarmerie team CLSG-Super U in second place in 2:12:45, Avenir Sportif Club Team was third in 2:22:1, Dream of Trails fourth in 2:27:36, and Louis Constant Fleming Hospital fifth in 2:28:22.

The 30K race starting in Lowlands and finishing at La Galion Beach attracted 17 teams Read more

The International Floralies of Martinique, «Caribbean Bouquet »: the first Caribbean project with a promising future.

>Martinique:--- From June 17th to 21st 2015, Martinique will host the fourth edition of the International Floralies in Trois- Ilets, as part of an innovative concept called «Caribbean Bouquet».

Twenty (20) Caribbean countries including Barbados, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Puerto Rico, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Trinidad & Tobago, French Guiana, Suriname, Brazil, St. Martin, St. Vincent, Guyana, St. Kitts, Grenada, Montserrat and Haiti, will take part in the «grand eco-cultural flourishing garden» to be presented to the Martinican public at the site of the historical La Pagerie Floral Park.

The Floralies Park of Trois-Ilets, dedicated to this vocation since 1979, is spread over three hectares and is located on a portion of the former «Domaine de la Pagerie», property of the family of Empress Joséphine Read more