Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
PHILIPSBURG--The Democratic Party ((DP)) has sent a letter to Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs on the increase of the pension age to 62.
In a press release on Wednesday, (DP) Leader Sarah Wescot-Williams said the party believes government is misleading parliament and the people of St. Maarten when it comes to this issue. "The decision to raise the pension age to 62 was taken quite some time ago by the (former) government of St. Maarten. This measure was also based on many recommendations to sustain the general pension fund," Wescot-Williams said in the release.
"Given this fact, the previous Council of Ministers engaged the unions to come to an understanding regarding the increased pension age for civil servants. This agreement with the civil service unions was eventually arrived at."
She said cognisant of this, many civil servants who are approaching the age of 60, were anticipating the increase in the pension age and the possibility for those who are able and willing, to continue working for two additional years. "This would have been done structurally and objectively. It has gone completely quiet on that front," she said.
The former Prime Minister is requesting the sitting Prime Minister to inform the entire civil service corps where this matter stands today and what the prospects are for the persons who would like to make use of the pension age increase and work two more years. "It is not too long ago that the CFT (Committee for Financial Supervision) put the blame for this obvious procrastination at the doors of government and parliament," she said.
"Government's response dated January 26, 2015 to my question on this very topic was misleading, to put it mildly. For government to have stated in January that the draft legislation to increase the pensionable age to 62 was submitted to Parliament, only unjustly promotes the feeling that Parliament is neglecting its duties as the legislative body for this country."
