Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
St. Maarten Government Falls – Three Coalition Members Defect
Picture: St. Maarten Parliament
NEWSFLASH!! St. Maarten– The Gumbs government fell shortly after 12.30 p.m. today (Wednesday, September 30, 2015) after the parliament passed a motion of no-confidence submitted by Democratic Party MP Sarah Wescot-Williams with an 8-7 vote Read more
Maduro Donates Bulletproof Vests
MP Franklin Meyers wears a bulletproof vest, surrounded by representatives of Maduro and Sons and the two Chief Inspectors. Photo contributed
St. Maarten – S.E.L. Maduro and Sons donated ten bulletproof vests to Chief Inspectors Rudolf Bloeiman and Ricardo Henson. The vests are for members of the bike patrol who are considered the ambassadors of St Read more
Meeting About Zebec-Deal Continues:Â Opposition Questions Deal, Coalition Praises Harbor
St. Maarten – Parliament will have to wait until this afternoon for answers to the questions it posed yesterday in a public meeting about the settlement between the Harbor Group of Companies and real estate developer Zebec over the failed Harbor Village project.
As Today reported on Monday, September 14, social insurance agency SZV borrowed the harbor $10 million on a short 3-month loan to settle the dispute with Zebec.
Yesterday’s meeting did not bring anything new to light Read more
S.E.L. Maduro & Sons Donates Bullet Proof Vests To The Police
PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - In the aftermath of Police Bike Patrol Officer Gamali Benjamin’s tragic demise, S.E.L. Maduro & Sons, in keeping with its pledge to the Police Force, has donated 10 bulletproof vests to Chief Inspector Rudolph C. Bloeiman and Chief Inspector Ricardo V. Henson.
The vests are specifically for the Bike Patrol unit who are considered “Ambassadors†of St. Maarten.
Raquel Coupland Wathey, General Manager of S.E.L. Maduro and Sons, said: “The safety of our officers is very important to us as a business and members of the community Read more
Garbage Meeting Fizzles: Many Questions, No Answers And No Solutions
St. Maarten – At the end of a long meeting, finally there were some fireworks when opposition MP asked Vromi-Minister Claret Connor to answer one question: “Is there a contract with a company to build the waste-to-energy plant and how does this jive with your visit to a project in Miami?â€
Minister Connor, who had just said that he would be able to inform the parliament on Monday when he would be able to answer the more than one hundred questions MPs had asked, did not bite Read more
Mp Heyliger: “The Dutch Keep Terrorizing Our Little Country†: Constitution Day Triggers Calls For Independence
St. Maarten – Parliament unanimously approved changes to several ordinances to establish the second Monday of October as Constitution Day, an official holiday. Under this legislation. Kingdom Day (December 15) will disappear from the local holiday-calendar. While approving the legislation was a formality, several MPs used the opportunity to express their sentiment about the country’s road towards independence.
“Moving towards the end goal – independence – it makes sense to move away from a day that celebrates that we are a part of the Kingdom,†National Alliance faction leader William Marlin said Read more
MPs question Dennis on Zebec settlement at Port
~ Sarah’s call for more speaker’s time voted down ~
PHILIPSBURG--Members of Parliament (MPs) fired off numerous questions seeking clarity on the Harbour’s settlement with Zebec Development during an emergency meeting on Monday.
The meeting was adjourned after the first round of questions to give Deputy Prime Minister Dennis Richardson a chance to obtain answers. The meeting will continue at 2:00pm today, Tuesday.
A proposal by Democratic Party (DP) MP Sarah Wescot-Williams at the start of the meeting for the speaking time to be increased to 30 minutes in the first round and 20 minutes in the second round was voted down with eight MPs voting against the proposal and six voting for it.
The vote was called after United People’s (UP) party MP Franklin Meyers said he opposed Wescot-Williams’ proposal Read more
Members of Parliament wanted more speaking time in Zebec/Harbor debate.
Disaster waiting to happen at Landfill --- MP’s express outrage at the current situation regarding Waste to Energy Plant and statements made by Prime Minister.
PHILIPSBURG:--- Several Members of Parliament expressed outrage on Friday morning in Parliament while posing several questions regarding the dumpsite in the middle of Philipsburg. Recently Member of Parliament Christopher Emmanuel posted a video on Facebook on the current situation at the Landfill Read more
Minister Richardson Criticizes Attorney-General Schram: “Justify Your Claims Or Shut The Hell Upâ€
Justice Minister Richardson is tired of accusations about corruption. Photo Today / Milton Pieters
St. Maarten – “My position has changed: it is put up or shut up. Justify your claims or shut the hell up. This has to stop,†Justice Minister Dennis Richardson said yesterday afternoon in parliament about the statements Attorney-General Guus Schram made last Friday about the interconnection between the underworld and the legitimate part of St. Maarten’s society.
“There are numerous indications showing that the underworld and the legitimate society in St Read more
Parliament adopts Constitution Day
PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten officially has ditched Kingdom Day, December 15, as an official holiday and replaced with it Constitution Day, which is to be observed annually on the second Monday in October, starting this year.
Parliament unanimously adopted the law on Thursday to make the day official and strike Kingdom Day from the calendar. The establishment of this newest holiday comes ahead of the fifth anniversary of St. Maarten’s attainment of country-within-the-Dutch-Kingdom status and the coming into force of the St Read more
MPs want Constitution Day on 2nd Monday in October
PHILIPSBURG--Members of Parliament (MPs) want Constitution Day to be observed annually on the second Monday of October instead of the actual day – October 10 – when the St. Maarten Constitution came into force.
The proposal to make October 10 a holiday and to have it replace Kingdom Day, December 15, by amending a number of laws, including the labour ordinance, was tabled by Education and Culture Minister Rita Bourne-Gumbs in a meeting of the Central Committee of Parliament on Tuesday afternoon.
The minister is slated to be back in Parliament for a vote on the law changes Thursday Read more
Richardson to Schram: Prove underworld claims or ‘shut up’
PHILIPSBURG--Justice Minister Dennis Richardson minced no words when he publicly called on Attorney-General Guus Schram to prove his claims about the mixing of the so-called underworld with civil society.
Richardson said in Monday's plenary session of Parliament that Schram should prove his claims or "shut the hell up."
Richardson was reacting to comments made by the Attorney-General on Friday at the swearing-in of a new judge for the Court of First Instance. Schram said, "The Friendly Island has lost its innocence."
He said another threat existed in St Read more
Meyers criticizes Mullet Bay state
PHILIPSBURG--It is “a shame†that former Mullet Bay Beach Resort property is still the same way as it was when Hurricane Luis devastated the island 20 years ago, United People’s (UP) party deputy leader Member of Parliament (MP) Franklin Meyers said in the last meeting of the 2014-2015 Parliamentary Year on Monday.
St Read more
Achievements and lack thereof highlighted as MPs close year
PHILIPSBURG--The achievements or lack thereof in the first Parliamentary year of the second Parliament came into focus as Members of Parliament (MPs) closed off the 2014-2015 legislative year in Parliament House on Monday. The 2015-2016 year opens today, Tuesday, with much pomp and ceremony.
The call to work together was issued by fraction leaders representing the coalition partners while the two opposition fraction leaders MP William Marlin (National Alliance) and Sarah Wescot-Williams (Democratic Party) were straightforward with their criticism about lack of action by the United People’s (UP) party-led coalition.
Destiny impaired
UP fraction leader MP Franklin Meyers laid the blame for the country’s stagnated growth and development in the past year at the door of The Hague saying that government and Parliament have spent the past year battling instructions and financial constraints due to financial supervision Read more
Faction leaders outline their achievement and failures during parliamentary year 2014 -2015.