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Usp Introduces Four New Candidates

St. Maarten News —The United St. Maarten Party (USP) has added four more candidates to the party to contest the upcoming elections that are slated for September 26, 2016 and was introduced to the public at the party headquarters on Friday. The new candidates, some of whom have worked for government for a number of years, felt that the time is now for them to play their part and serve the people of the island.

Party leader Frans Richardson said that the USP “is not only about putting people on the list but also guiding them in the way that the Parliament of St Read more

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Sarah Wescot: New Hospital On Gov’T’S Agenda

St. Maarten News —The construction of a new hospital is one of several projects in the pipeline for the current government, according to President of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams. At press conference yesterday, Mrs. Wescot-Williams explained that there will be an announcement of the names of the companies who have won the bid for the new hospital Read more

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Dp Condemns ‘Racial Antics’ In Parliament

St. Maarten News – Leader of the Democratic Party (DP) Sarah Wescot-Williams has condoned racial comments in parliament and is calling for leaders of political parties to speak out. “Call it whatever you want, but I cringe every time I hear Members of Parliament (MPs), who think it’s the popular thing to do, in parliament express the kind of exclusionary language we are hearing from these MPs more and more,” Wescot-Williams said in a press statement issued Sunday Read more

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Gracita Arrindell Leads Ppa In Elections: Has Orange Become The New Green?

St. Maarten News – “Lack of leadership, not sticking to commitments and turning their back on the people of St. Maarten,” said Gracita Arrindell yesterday about her reasons for leaving the United People’s Party and returning to the revived People’s Progressive Alliance (PPA) as its leader for the September 26 parliamentary elections Read more

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The Checkered Past Of Ava Airways Chairman Arrindell

Hallucination airline or the next big thing?

St. Maarten News / By Hilbert Haar – Is Olivier Arrindell at it again? The controversy about his ghost airline AVA Airways is gaining momentum with the bitter exchange of opinions with businessman Michael Ferrier.

It all started with Arrindell’s claim that he had obtained a business economic permit from the government of St Read more

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Dp Puts Fatca Back On The Agenda

St. Maarten News – It is not the first time that the faction of the Democratic Party wants to discuss the Fatca – the American Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act – and its consequences for local businesses and banks (see related story on page 3). In February 2013, there was a similar request by then MPs Roy Marlin and Leroy de Weever Read more

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Dp Wants Meeting About Us Tax Compliance Act

St. Maarten News: The Democratic Party faction in parliament has requested the Finance Committee of Parliament to examine and discuss the execution of the FATCA by the local banks on St. Maarten.

To this end, the DP has proposed that the Bankers Association be invited to apprise parliament of their experiences with this Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which is a United States law that introduces a “reporting regime for financial institutions with respect to certain accounts”.

Under this law, Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs), such as banks are required to report about certain foreign financial accounts and offshore assets of US taxpayers. 

Another way to ensure compliance with the FATCA in foreign jurisdictions, has been with the so-called Intergovernmental Agreements.

“If a jurisdiction enters into an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) to implement FATCA, the reporting and other compliance burdens on the financial institutions in the jurisdiction may be simplified Read more

“Moment Of Immense Pride” Dp Says About Keacy Carty

St. Maarten News – “It was an immense moment of pride for all who came out to welcome our young sports hero Keacy Carty back home on Wednesday evening. The story of his performance during the finals of the  U19 World Cup Cricket cannot be retold often enough,” the Democratic Party said in a press release. 

The party joined the rest of St. Maarten in congratulating Keacy and his parents, Keith and Angela.

“Keacy’s accomplishment is the coronation of years of hard work, put in by the young athlete himself and all those persons who nurtured and continue to nurture the sport of cricket on St Read more

Up-Board Slams Coalition “The Dp Membership Is In Shambles”

St. Maarten – “History surely repeats itself and it seems more so in the formation of the coalition of eight,” United People’s Party (UP) President Sylvia Meyers said in a press statement on behalf of her party’s board yesterday. 

“Imagine the UP-led coalition was heavily criticized for not having a full council of ministers appointed and today the coalition of eight is greeted with the same reality.  Out of seven ministerial positions, they were only able to fill five.” 

“The National Alliance should have led with the same collective responsibility any coalition faces and not hide behind a press release only promoting their minister nominees having passed the screening,” the release states. 

“We are closely monitoring the inconsistencies and political rhetoric which clearly indicates of a weak new majority government.  It is quite obvious there is an apparent weakness in the new coalition and further testimony is the new recruitment effort of the Democratic Party led-ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labor with the placement of an advertisement in the daily newspapers looking for persons to join the cabinet.” 

According to the UP-board it is “unheard of when the DP cannot find individuals within its own ranks to join its cabinet.  It’s a crying shame that they have to resort to this route.  It’s widely known the DP membership is in shambles and it seems no better way to recruit new members than by promising cabinet jobs.” 

“We will continue to be the eyes and ears of the people who undoubtedly continue to support us knowing all the trials and tribulations we’ve faced during the past 11-months,” the statement continues Read more

Seven New Political Parties Report For 2016 Elections

St. Maarten – An astonishing number of seven new political parties reported to the offices of the Electoral Council yesterday to submit their request to be registered for the February 9 elections. Among them is the St. Maarten Christian Party, led by Pastor Wycliffe Smith. On the other hand, the party of European Dutch residents did not show up, reportedly because they did not have enough time to prepare their documentation.

With the seven new parties – if they get all their formalities in order – the field for the elections will consist of eleven and possibly twelve parties Read more

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Dp Pushes Again Membership Of Open Government Partnership

DP policy advisor Emil Lee at the summit in Mexico City. Photo contributed

St. Maarten – The Democratic Party is once more pushing the country’s membership of the Open Government Partnership (OGP), an issue it made a core element of its election campaign last year Read more

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Retired Politician Dave Levenstone: Saba, Statia And St. Maarten Have To Strengthen Their Ties

Dave Levenstone. Photo Caribisch Netwerk

THE BOTTOM, SABA – The Saban political veteran Dave Levenstone says that his fellow-Sabans do not speak up enough, because the evaluation report about constitutional reform states that Saba does better than the other islands, Hazel Durand reports on Caribisch Netwerk.

“But I do not think that we have to see this as a setback,” he says. “The Island Council must establish an independent committee to study the evaluation and to arrive that way at solutions that are in the best interest of the island.” Levenstone is the former leader of the Saba Democratic Party and the presenter of the poplar political radio program Good Day Saba Read more

Winners And Losers: Who Will Survive The Polls In February?

St. Maarten / By Hilbert Haar – February 9, 2016 is crunch day for politicians and those who aspire to become one. The parliamentary elections – for some mysterious reason perceived by some as ‘snap elections’, whatever that may be – will give voters the opportunity to speak their mind about the constitutional drama that concluded on Wednesday when the ministers of the Marcel Gumbs cabinet tendered their resignation and Governor Drs Read more

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Dp Criticizes Mp De Weever: “Counterpart Policy Is A Sure Recipe For Massive Lay-Offs”

St. Maarten – “As much as he tries, MP and former Minister OF Public health, Social Development and Labor Cornelius de Weever will never be able to convince anyone that the reason for his defection from the Red-White-Blue coalition in 2014 had something to do with opposition he encountered back then to “his” counterpart law,” Democratic Party MP Sarah Wescot-Williams states in a press release Read more

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President Of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams: “Mps Waste Hundreds Of Guilders”

St. Maarten – “Every half hour wasted by Members of Parliament costs taxpayers nine hundred guilders. (15 x 60 is 900 guilders). This amount is close to what some persons in our community earn monthly after deductions. It equals the school fee for others. For yet others, it equals the monthly cost for day-care,” Democratic Party MP and President of parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams stated after a meeting of parliament did not take place on Monday morning due to a lack of quorum Read more

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Chair Aborts Meeting Within Sixty Seconds: New Majority Calls Action Mp De Weever Illegal

St. Maarten – Acting as the second vice president of Parliament, independent MP Cornelius de Weever wrong-footed parliament yesterday morning by opening and closing a meeting designed to appoint a new chair within sixty seconds after which he “ran out of the hall,” according to Democratic Party MP Sarah Wescot-Williams.

De Weever called on article 37 of the rules of order, after remarking that the cabinet had submitted a national decree to dissolve parliament Read more

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Opinion: Something’S Brewing

We know since last night that Governor Holiday sent a letter to Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs. We do not know the content of this letter, but there is no doubt that this will come out some time today.

The past couple of days, two political parties have come out with press conferences where they made their positions clear. The National Alliance nor the Democratic Party fear elections, they say.

Do they really want elections? Not really Read more

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In Case Governor Signs Decree To Dissolve Parliament: Dp Proposes Interim Cabinet And Elections After One Year

From left: DP treasurer Giselle York, MP Sarah Wescot-Williams and policy advisor Emil Lee. Photo today / Hilbert Haar

St. Maarten – In case Governor Holiday decides to sign the decree to dissolve parliament and elections follow on December 8, the Democratic Party proposes to annul the current motion, to let the new majority choose “a capable Council of Ministers” and to set the date for the elections one year from the appointment of this council Read more

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Mp Matser Appeals Fraud Conviction This Afternoon

Parliamentarian Silvio Matser arrives at the courthouse on January 7 for his sentence hearing. File photo Today / Milton Pieters

St. Maarten – MP Silvio Matser appears in the Common Court of Justice this afternoon at 1.30 p.m Read more

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Green Light For New Government, But Pm Gumbs Disagrees: “Even The Governor Can Make A Mistake”

St. Maarten – Governor Drs. Eugene Holiday has given the green light to the National Alliance-led coalition to form a new government. There will therefore be no elections on December 8, as would have been the case if the governor had ratified the national decree the cabinet sent to his office to dissolve the parliament and to call new elections.

Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs “absolutely disagrees” with the decision and his cabinet does not intend to make its positions available Read more

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Opinion: “Self Above Country” 101

Who said politics is boring? The conspirators in parliament had their first laugh on Wednesday when they lured all MPs to the House of Representatives with an irresistible agenda point – the remarks made by Attorney-General Guus Schram about the ties between the criminal underworld and St. Maarten’s legitimate society. Then followed an agenda point about the situation at the government-owned companies, in particular the airport.

But those who thought that the opposition intended to wash the ears of airport director Regina Labega were in for a nasty surprise Read more

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St. Maarten Government Falls Again: Fifth Cabinet In Five Years In The Making

UP-leader Theo Heyliger (left) and MP Silvio Matser on 10-10-14 when they were still political allies. Now the political marriage is over: “I cannot take the internal abuse anymore,” Matser said yesterday Read more

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Lake Stays In Parliament, No Seat For Buncamper-Molanus

St. Maarten – Rumors about the makeup of the new cabinet and its possible consequences for seats in parliament spread rapidly yesterday after the fall of the Gumbs cabinet. One such rumor was that Maurice Lake, now independent, would return as the Minister of Vromi; that move would have opened a slot in parliament for Maria Buncamper-Molanus Read more

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Parliament Demands That Ag Guus Schram Resigns

Attorney-General Guus Schram on an occasion when he was in St. Maarten. File photo Today / Hilbert Haar

St. Maarten – The parliament unanimously supported a motion that asks Attorney-General Guus Schram to resign and that urges the government to demand that the attorney-general of St. Maarten lives and works here. This newspaper asked the AG whether it is still possible for him to do his work on the island. “It is not up to the prosecutor’s office to react to this motion,” was the reaction.

The opposition National Alliance and Democratic Party had requested the meeting of parliament to discuss remarks Schram made on September 11 during the installation of Judge Sander van Rijen Read more