Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
PHILIPSBURG--It has been a month and Democratic Party ((DP)) Member of Parliament (MP) Sarah Wescot-Williams is still waiting on answers from government, in particular Public Housing Minister Marcel Gumbs, to her questions about whether St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation (SMHDF) Director Henry Lynch and others from the management team have been suspended pending an investigation into the foundation’s operations.
Wescot-Williams, then holding the dual role of prime minister and MP, wrote on December 16, 2014, to then Public Housing Minister Maurice Lake enquiring about the suspension, whether the foundation’s Board is legally constituted, and when the last annual report received by government was, among other questions. Lake, who was also holding the position of both minister and MP at the time, demitted office three days after the letter was sent by Wescot-Williams.
“My questions were straightforward. I did not ask for books, I did not ask for financials or incorporation articles,†said Wescot-Williams in a press statement on Friday in which she again outlined her questions to the minister.
Some 72 hours after taking office on December 19, 2014, Prime Minister/Public Housing Minister Marcel Gumbs was before Parliament for a meeting on the developments at the foundation. That meeting is still to be recalled after it was suspended to give Gumbs time to get answers to questions from MPs.
“The prime minister was vague and dismissive about when Parliament can expect answers on the SMHDF. Will the Parliament get these tomorrow, next week, next month, ever?â€
The public is “left in the dark†about the allegations levelled at the foundation’s management.
Gumbs “boasted†of the record time between taking office and appearing before Parliament, said Wescot-Williams, but she is still awaiting answers to what she labelled as “basic questions†about the issues at the foundation.
She gave Gumbs kudos “for seeking a better rapport†with Parliament. While Gumbs has suggested an informal “meet and greet†between his Cabinet and Parliament, a better way to build rapport is “upholding one of the fundamental rights of Parliament – the right to information.â€
She called on Gumbs to provide the information requested “if not for Parliament, then for the people, on whose behalf we (I) speak.â€
