SXMElections.com

THE HAGUE--A national unity government or a broadly carried business Cabinet serving the best interest of the St. Maarten people while at the same time allowing an in-depth criminal investigation into the vote-buying and the process of the recent Parliamentary elections – that is what Member of the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament Roelof van Laar of the Labour Party PvdA will be bringing forward during the handling of the draft 2015 budget of Kingdom Relations in the Second Chamber today, Wednesday.

Van Laar's suggestion is a more moderate solution to the integrity problems in the St. Maarten government than the one that the liberal democratic VVD party and the Socialist Party (SP) will be presenting: an instruction by the Kingdom government ordering a criminal investigation of United People's (UP) party leader Theo Heyliger and other corrupt government officials.

"A proper government is an absolute requirement for advancement. There is nowhere near a proper government in St. Maarten. It is time for a big clean-up. The PvdA is urging the local political parties to do something about this. Stop the formation of a government based on eight seats and make a move in the best interest of your country," stated Van Laar.

The Member of Parliament (MP) is of the opinion that a national unity government or broadly carried business Cabinet can create the needed time and space for a proper investigation of the elections and vote-buying, while at the same time parties can jointly work on tackling corruption and fraud. "Take responsibility in tackling the wrong-doings on your island."

According to Van Laar, things are going wrong in St. Maarten and residents need the help of the Netherlands to restore proper governance on the island. "The PvdA already brought up the issue of vote-buying since 2010. It appears that this hasn't lessened during the recent elections. Who is going to bring those responsible to justice and when," said Van Laar, who wants support to strengthen the local Prosecutor's Office.

Van Laar is concerned about the developments in the formation of a new government. "That is why the PvdA is asking for an in-depth investigation of the buying of votes and seats in Parliament before a new government takes over," he said.

"The St. Maarten people also need our help to improve integrity and to combat corruption in government. The inquiries have shown that everything is for sale on the island. One call to the minister is sufficient to have all problems go away when irregularities are discovered during controls. Permits are arranged the same way.

"Money transferred from government-owned companies through shady schemes. The self-interest of politicians seem to have the overhand throughout the governmental apparatus. Minister, it couldn't be that this exists in our Kingdom," Van Laar stated.

The MP wants a "strong signal" of the Kingdom Council of Ministers, the St. Maarten governor and the St. Maarten politicians. "Together, they have to declare war on corruption. We now have a great analysis and plan by PwC [PricewaterhouseCoopers – Ed.]. This must be implemented post-haste."