Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
PHILIPSBURG:--- The current coalition government have a real problem on their hands to solve, now that MP Frans Richardson has asked the Minister of Justice by way of letter to resign effective immediately.Political pundits says that MP Frans Richardson is getting ahead of himself and that he needs to know that St. Maarten has a constitution that must be respected. The first being the legislative body (Parliament) who could send home a Minister by way of a majority and not single-handily.Secondly St. Maarten does have executive powers (Council of Ministers) and then comes the judicial powers. It must be clear that in principle all three powers are equal and none of them supersedes the other. The question now remains is if MP Frans Richardson has the backing of his coalition partners who would have to bring a motion of non- confidence against Minister Richardson. Already the Prime Minister of St. Maarten Marcel Gumbs said last week when asked by SMN News if he intends to resign if Minister Richardson has to go, the Prime Minister said that if the current coalition brings a motion of non-confidence against Minister Richardson he will view that motion against the Council of Ministers.One must also remember that the current coalition formed their government since September 24th 2014 and took until December 9th 2014 to install a partial cabinet with five Ministers. To date the coalition cannot fill the other two Ministries with Ministers and this has created enormous pressure on the current Council of Ministers.MP Sarah Wescot Williams in a statement said that the UP/UPS+2 governing coalition agreed in their governing accord that ministers are a joint responsibility of all coalition partners. So to ask a minister to resign would have to be done by all of the coalition partners. Wescot Williams said she have not seen the USP letter, so she could only go by media reports. “Neither do I know of the agreement between the earlier coalition of 9 and the USP. We seem again to be heading to a stand-off. The coalition sends home the ministers by way of motions of no confidence OR the government dissolves parliament with as a result a new election? Which will it be?? Any which way, who stands to lose are the people of this country, because the taxpayers will have to pay for the decisions and whims of these politicians. (An ousted minister or MP not yet 60 years, will have to be paid at least an extra year; elections cost money etc.)†Wescot Williams said at this moment she cannot say where the island is heading.
