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Up Welcomes Ppa To Political Process For September 2016 Parliamentary Elections

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten – The United People's Party (UP) Board President Sylvia Meyers, would like to congratulate the People’s Progressive Alliance (PPA) Drs. Gracita Arrindell for joining the political process in order to participate in the September 2016 parliamentary elections.

Meyers added that Arrindell was a member of the UP and ran with the party twice as the #2 candidate on the party slate, and on both occasions the former Member of Parliament lacked in votes to justify the position that she was given such as the first President of the Parliament of Sint Maarten.

“This is not a lack of leadership as brought forward by Arrindell during her press conference that the UP is lacking, far from it, it was about putting the best people in the top positions to run our country.  The UP is about opportunity for the people along with the improvement in the quality of life of all the people, and not just a few. 

“The unfortunate insinuations and mudslinging by the PPA lacks any substance.  The UP Party leader Member of Parliament Theo Heyliger, has displayed leadership throughout his political career, and with the most recent being, putting together a two-thirds majority in parliament of 10-seats in order to provide a stable government for the people of the country to prosper.

“However unfortunately, there were those who decided to take another path and the 10-seat two-thirds majority became history.  The UP Party remains committed to the people of the country, and the people are well aware of who turned their backs on them and Sint Maarten, and will decide their fate at the September polls Read more

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Rationale For Elections Falls Apart As Kingdom Council Opposes To The Changes In Electoral Reform Proposed By St. Maarten.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Kingdom Council of Ministers expresses serious doubt over “ship jumping” solution proposed by St. Maarten. The law of “unintended consequences” raises its ugly head as the Kingdom Council gave a negative advice on the changes to be made in the country’s constitution which would have addressed the so-called ship jumping.

The Kingdom Council of Ministers has informed the Prime Minister of St. Maarten that their proposed changes to the constitution to stop ship jumping will not work since it will hinge on democracy within parliament.

They pointed out that if an MP jumps ship the remaining members might not be able to form a majority, while no new ministers could be appointed since the member who jumped ship is not allowed to nominate a minister 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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Theo Heyliger Criticizes Government For Repeated Power Outages

Some Gebe generators are in a bad condition. Photo Today / Hilbert Haar

St. Maarten News – The seemingly extensive mechanical and other problems faced by the Gebe power plant are taking a toll on the economy and putting additional stress on residents, United People’s party leader MP Theo Heyliger said in a press statement.

“Residents and businesses have had to deal with frequent power outages for going on two weeks and there has been no clear indication from government about what is going on Read more

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Mp Frans Richardson Sounds The Alarm: Social Media Messages: Kill The Prime Minister

St. Maarten News – Messages on social media suggest killing the prime minister, members of parliament and their corrupted friends, MP Frans Richardson said during a meeting of parliament about vote buying. While Richardson considered there threats far more important than the issue of vote buying, no other MP even reacted to his statement.

“I am going to protect myself and my family,” Richardson said Read more

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Up Party Board Refutes Mp Lake Statement On Payment Of Dues

Philipsburg, Sint Maarten – The Board of the United People’s Party (UP) has taken note of a statement made by Member of Parliament (MP) Maurice Lake on Sunday at a press conference concerning the payment of party dues.

UP candidates who ran in the 2014 parliamentary elections were asked to make a monthly contribution to the party in the form of dues in order to cover the costs of campaign material for the candidates.

Each candidate signed the automatic bank transfer authorization, but if MP Lake had looked carefully at his bank statements, he would have noticed that nothing was deducted from his bank account.

MP Maurice Lake also has not officially resigned from the UP Party as we have nothing officially on file.

The UP Board emphatically states that the Party has not received any dues paid in cash or by cheque or via bank transfer into the UP Party bank account since Lake has been an MP.

The UP Board finds it very strange that MP Lake would make such a public statement when he knows that it is baseless Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Member of Parliament Maurice Lake has put all rumors to rest at a press conference on Sunday when he joined the leader and members of the United People’s Party (USP) and announced that he will be contesting the September 26th elections on the USP slate Read more

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Exclusive: Upp Leader Seeking Building Permit To Construct Marina And Boardwalk In Simpson Bay.

Department of VROMI issues negative advice, since developer does not have the land in long lease.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Leader of the United Peoples Party Theodore Heyliger through the company SBL applied for a building permit to construct a marina and boardwalk in Simpson Bay Read more

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Up And Na, Shadowboxing About Education On The Move!

Every budget over the last ten years and beyond shows that education consumes the greatest part of it. But instead of things getting better, our education product is lagging far behind. We have been reading about so many problems within our public educational system that it makes us hold our head and bawl.

All indications are that our private schools are being better managed. We are therefore, somewhat surprised that after so many years of talking about it, no decision has been made to date to privatize public education.

Our largest secondary school, if media reports are correct, is planning to establish an English curriculum because we are not having sufficient students stream into the Dutch system at that school Read more

Mp Leonard: Regulation Welcomed, But Only Existing School Bus Drivers Should Be Considered

PHILIPSBURG – United People’s Party (UPP) Member of Parliament (MP) Tamara Leonard said she is a strong proponent of regulating and properly structuring the school bus system, but she is against any move by Government to undercut existing school bus drivers.

Leonard said the bidding process for the supply of school bus services should only be open and available to existing school bus operators Read more

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Up Party Board Supports Position By Up Mps And Independents To Resolve Sint Maarten Government Crisis And Provide Stability

Philipsburg, Sint Maarten -– The Board of the United People’s Party (UP) supports the position taken by UP Members of Parliament (MPs) and Independent MPs Cornelius de Weever and MP Leona Marlin-Romeo, also known as the Super Seven, with respect to the current political situation that the country finds itself in.

The options are very reasonable and in the interests of the country in moving forward.  The question is, will the Marlin Government show political maturity in working with the opposition for the sake of the country?

The Leader of the UP Party MP Theo Heyliger has presented options of stability for the country.  At the moment the country is paralyzed and it seems that the Marlin Cabinet will wait it out until the MP who supports the Marlin Cabinet coalition is released from police detention.

Should the functioning of Government be halted at the expense of the ongoing detention of the MP who supports the Marlin Cabinet?  Government agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations, and the country at large, eagerly await the finalization of the draft 2016 budget Read more

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Mp Lloyd Richardson Doing Everything Possible To Secure His Brother's Garbage Contract Even At The Expense Of His First Cousin.

UPP Leader wants to maintain Port de Plaisance agreement.

PHILIPSBURG:---- While MP Hyacinth Richardson was the first MP to ask MP Lloyd Richardson to support the draft 2016 budget and to stop rejoicing over the arrest of MP Silvio Matser because they are first cousins.
SMN News understands that MP Lloyd Richardson agreed to support the draft 2016 budget if he is given a guarantee that he will get his brother’s garbage collection contract renewed, while the leader of the United Peoples Party Theodore Heyliger wants to maintain the agreement the former government has with Port de Plaisance for land that is zoned for a parking area.
Wanting to control at least three of the government owned companies will also give certain politicians the rights to dictate and spend the monies these companies have aside for projects.
There is a saying if someone does the crime, certainly they should also do the time, another is everyone is innocent until proven guilty Read more

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“I want to make clear that there is a government in place, all I wanted is support to approve the 2016 draft budget”

PHILIPSBURG:--- Prime Minister William Marlin dispelled the allegations and rumors and even statements made during a radio program on Friday that he went tried to form a government on Thursday with the United Peoples Party Read more

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Mps Pepper Ministers With Questions In Budget Debate

Independent MP Leona Marlin-Romeo (standing) speaks in the budget debate on Monday.

 PHILIPSBURG--The 2016 draft budget was tabled in Parliament by Finance Minister Richard Gibson on Monday morning in Parliament House. Members of Parliament (MPs), who had up to 90 minutes to speak, peppered the Council of Ministers with a barrage of questions spanning from the budget and Government policies to general topics of interest.

  The seven Ministers, who all made presentations about the working of their Ministries on Monday, will be back in Parliament today, Tuesday, starting at 2:00pm to deliver answers to the questions from MPs Read more

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Opinion: The Spirit Of Giving

Sometimes, initiatives that may have started with the best of intentions are raising eyebrows. Such is the case with the “giving back to the community” initiative of parliamentarian Leona Marlin-Romeo – and we’d like to place this in the context of 2016 – an election year.

We are all familiar with the vote buying scandal dating back to 2010 when a couple of police officers sold their vote for $300 a pop to the United People’s party Read more

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‘Shotgun Budget’ Tabled In Parliament By Gibson

Finance Minister Richard Gibson (right) with MP Maurice Lake. 

PHILIPSBURG--Parliament is faced with a “shotgun budget” as the draft 2016 budget was described by Finance Minister Richard Gibson Read more

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‘Shotgun Budget’ Tabled In Parliament By Gibson

PHILIPSBURG--Parliament is faced with a “shotgun budget” as the draft 2016 budget was described by Finance Minister Richard Gibson. The Minister tabled the budget, totaling NAf 438,000 in the Central Committee meeting of Parliament on this morning.  

  There is “no time to do the budget as it should have been done” and to get all policies from the seven ministries covered, said the Minister Read more

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Urgent Parliament Meeting Requested About Nipa Issue

PHILIPSBURG--An urgent Parliament meeting has been requested about issues related to the National Institute for Professional Advancement (NIPA) by Members of Parliament (MPs) Leona Marlin-Romeo (independent), Read more

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Former Mp Laville Stands Trial For Threatening James And York

St. Maarten – Former Member of Parliament Romain Jules Laville stands trial tomorrow morning for firearm possession and for threatening his former fellow-faction member Jules James and, on a later date, steel pan icon Isidore York.

Officers of the National Detective Agency arrested Laville on March 26 of last year in the context of an investigation into alleged threats he made against former UP-parliamentarian Jules James on June 11, 2012 and against Isidore York on November 28 of the same year Read more

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Up-Leader Commends Police For Arrest Robbery-Suspects

St. Maarten News – Leader of the United People’s Party (UP) and Member of Parliament (MP) Theo Heyliger and the party-board “commend the men and women of the Sint Maarten police force for their successes within the past two weeks that led to several dangerous armed robbers being taken off the streets,” the party said in a press statement.

“We have taken note of the recent joint operation between the Gendarmes and our local police force that resulted in the apprehension of four suspects who are thought to be responsible for armed robberies committed on both sides of the island,” the UP said in a press statement.

“These robbers are suspected of aggressive and violent robberies.  Thanks to the cooperation between both law enforcement agencies of the French and Dutch sides, an end has been brought to this group.  This is a result of the Police Cooperation Treaty that exists to fight cross-border crime.”

“Everybody has a role to play in fighting crime.  It cannot be left up to the men and women in blue.  They need the help of the community to fight crime effectively, and therefore every law-abiding member of the community has to be the eyes and ears of our police force if we really want to take a big bite out of crime,” the release states.

“At the same time, our men and women in blue also need to have the necessary tools and protections for them and their families.  They put their lives on the line every day for our community and for our visitors.  We must ensure that they are taken care of for the sacrifice that they make every day in serving our community – to protect and serve,” the UP stated.  

An urgent Central Committee meeting requested by UP MPs Franklin Meyers and Tamara Leonard and independent MP Leona Marlin-Romeo about the status of insurance coverage for police officers and their families; has been scheduled for this Friday at 10 a.m Read more

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Up Commends Police On Recent Successes In Apprehending Dangerous Armed Robbers

Philipsburg, Sint Maarten – Leader of the United People’s Party (UP) and Member of Parliament (MP) Theodore “Theo” Heyliger as well as the Board of the UP Party would like to commend the men and women of the Sint Maarten Police Force for their successes within the past two weeks that led to several dangerous armed robbers being taken off the streets.

“We have taken note of the recent joint operation between the Gendarmes and our local Police Force which resulted in the apprehension of four suspects who are thought to be responsible for armed robberies committed on both sides of the island.

“These robbers who are in Police custody are suspected of aggressive and violent robberies.  Thanks to the cooperation between both law enforcement agencies of the French and Dutch sides, an end has been brought to this group.  This cooperation between both Police Forces is a result of the Police Cooperation Treaty that exist to fight cross-border crime.

“Everybody has a role to play in fighting crime.  It cannot be left up to the men and women in blue.  They need the help of the community in order to fight crime effectively, and therefore every law-abiding member of the community has to be the eyes and ears of our Police Force if we really want to take out a big bite out of crime.

“At the same time, our men and women in blue also need to have the necessary tools and protections as well for them and their families.  They put their lives on the line every day for our community and for our visitors.  We must ensure that they are taken care of for the sacrifice that they make every day in serving our community – to protect and serve,” UP Party Board said on Sunday Read more

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Theo Gives Away 60.000 Pencil Cases

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten – Leader of the United People’s Party (UP) and Member of Parliament (MP) Theodore “Theo” Heyliger once again visited several elementary schools this week.

MP Heyliger is giving away pencil cases to students who annually look forward to this kind gesture. As customary a motto is printed on the pencil cases which serves as a motivation for the students Read more

Up Leader And Board Wishes Populace A Healthy, Safe And Prosperous New Year. Formidable Opposition Role Forthcoming In 2016

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten – The United People's Party (UP) Leader Theodore Heyliger and board, extend best wishes to all Sint Maarteners/Saint Martiners for a healthy, safe and prosperous New Year.

“The Year 2016 should be a year where the community and business sector work together for a better Sint Maarten.  Significant progress must be made on a number of fronts in order to balance the 2016 budget, reduce crime, create jobs, improve health care, re-align education, youth welfare and much more.  Government has its responsibility and we will hold them accountable.

“Preparations were well underway for the people to go to the polls in February Read more

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Timeshare, The Sick Cousin Of The Tourism Industry

After many years, legislation remains in limbo

St. Maarten – Trouble in the timeshare industry probably dates back further than December 2010, when the controversial sale of the Pelican Resort caused uproar among employees and timeshare owners alike, but it is a good starting point for getting an impression of the state of this industry and the lack of action on the part of successive governments.

When the Pelican Resort changed ownership in December 2010, the jobs of 182 employees were suddenly on the line Read more

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