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style="text-align: center;">GEBE Supervisory Board plans to file complaint against Maduro and Harley.

PHILIPSBURG: --- SMN News has landed its hands on some more documents relating to the dismissal of Romelio Maduro all of which was sent to the Council of Ministers on the decision taken by the Supervisory Board of Directors to dismiss the former Chief Operational Officer (COO) Romelio Maduro when they discovered that Maduro abused his position as the COO and head of the management team when he signed a contract with Alfred Harley under a company that is owned by his mother which is meant for inter-island purchasing and not consultancy.
On May 15th 2015, the supervisory board sent a letter to the Council of Ministers stating that they have taken a decision not to renew the working contract for Maduro Read more

Chicago's July 4 rituals: fireworks, gun deaths

CHICAGO--Late in the evening on July 4 a haze of smoke from backyard fireworks hung over Chicago. Like kids all over the city, 7-year-old Amari Brown stood on the sidewalk enjoying the show - until the staccato burst of explosives turned into gunfire.
  Brown was hit when a man ran around the corner and shot at his group in an apparent gang-related attack. He was rushed to the hospital in his father's arms and died two hours later.
  The boy was the youngest of 10 people killed and more than 50 injured in gun violence over the Independence Day weekend, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner and local media reports Read more

EXCLUSIVE: Mysterious draft MOU signed by GEBE COO and GB Energy Surfaced --- PM Marcel Gumbs and MP Theodore Heyliger witnessed signing at DIVI Little Bay Hotel.

style="text-align: center;">Supervisory Board of Directors allegedly Cancelled MOU --- Will Prime Minister come forward with signed copies.

PHILIPSBURG:--- The much talked about Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that was signed earlier this year by the former COO of GEBE Romelio Maduro and the President of the G. B Energy Pablo Porles has surfaced. However, SMN News only managed to retrieve the unsigned copy which is documented as “Privileged and Confidential.” The MOU which several Members of Parliament requested and to date cannot receive was signed on February 4th 2015 at the Divi Little Bay Hotel in the presence of Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs, the shareholder representative of the Government of St Read more

Swift action, evacuation for 2nd KLM bomb hoax

AIRPORT--Another KLM plane was the target of an apparent bomb-scare hoax on Friday afternoon. An anonymous caller phoned airport check-in counter 46 and said that there was a bomb on KLM flight 785. Although no bombs were found after thorough searches of both the plane and the airport building, this is the second such costly and disruptive bomb-scare in a matter of months.

Another scare, also pointing to a bomb on KLM, prompted a mass evacuation of Princess Juliana International Airport SXM on Saturday, December 6, 2014.

Friday’s threat was called in at 11:45am, airport Special Projects Coordinator Robert Brown relayed during an impromptu press conference held jointly with Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication Claret Connor and Chief Inspector Police spokesperson Ricardo Henson.

Emergency procedures started after the agent to receive the call informed a security guard Read more

Editorial - In the middle

The same-day postponement of Monday’s continuation “until further notice” of a plenary session in Parliament on developments at NV GEBE did not come as a complete surprise. During the original meeting last week Friday interim Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI Marcel Gumbs in his capacity of shareholder representative indicated the need for more documentation to answer the questions posed.

Apparently the latter could not be gathered over the weekend, hence the delay Read more

Gearing up to a new era of colonialism and nepotism

Dear Editor,

Lately, our representatives seem to worry a lot -and sometimes rightly so- about the Dutch (post) colonial powers. So far, the apogee of this independence rhetoric came to light when an MP was quoted as saying that he would rather “die on his feet than live on his knees”. The MP was quick to forget that Dutch PM Rutte already indicated that independence is just a phone call away.

So why so much noise? It is nothing more than putting up smokescreens in order to derive the attention from the real problem, namely the new era of (corporate) colonialism and nepotism which is upon us Read more

Families of South Carolina church massacre victims offer forgiveness

CHARLESTON, South Carolina--As the young white man charged with murdering nine people inside an historic black church in South Carolina stood blankly silent during a court hearing on Friday, relatives of slain worshippers addressed him one by one, offering tearful words of grief and forgiveness.

Dylann Roof, 21, who authorities say spent an hour in Bible study with parishioners at the nearly 200-year-old Emanuel African Methodist Church before opening fire on them, stood quietly, stoically, as he appeared via video feed for an initial bond hearing before a magistrate judge.

Dressed in a black-and-white prison uniform and flanked by two guards in body armour, Roof showed no reaction as the judge ordered him held without bail Read more

What’s is in it for me? Gearing up to a new era of colonialism and nepotism

Dear Editor,

Lately, our representatives seem to worry a lot, and sometimes rightly so, about the Dutch (post) colonial powers. Some of our MP's are calling for independence while presenting themselves as the last of the Mohicans. So far, the apogee of this independence rhetoric came to light when an MP was quoted as saying that he rather "die on his feet than live on his knees." The MP was quick to forget that Dutch PM Rutte already indicated that independence is just a phone call away (i).

So why so much noise? It is nothing more than putting up smokescreens in order to dr0ive the attention from the real problem, namely the new era of (corporate) colonialism and nepotism which is upon us Read more

Editorial - A word to the wise

It may seem like "the same old story," but a warning by the Committee for Financial Supervision CFT (see Thursday paper) against taking up too much debt should not go unheeded. After the Antillean debt relief by the Netherlands that accompanied the constitutional reforms per 10-10-10 Curaçao's debt again has reached 40 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP), the norm internationally considered acceptable.

St Read more

Warner unravels

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad--Hard on the heels of his bizarre voluntary admission that he conspired to conceal the discovery of a quantity of marijuana in 2013, former Trinidad and Tobago national security minister Jack Warner, who is currently charged with multiple counts of racketeering, corruption and money-laundering in the United States, held a news conference on Tuesday afternoon to "reveal all the details" – this is according to a report from the Caribbean News Now.

However, many of those "details" appear to have no basis in fact or have been denied by the other individuals implicated by Warner in his admission of perverting the course of justice Read more

Rain Forest Adventures did not invite SXM Pride

Dear Editor,

I read with interest the article in Monday's paper stating that Rain Forest Adventures met with members of the heritage, culture and environmental groups to share its plans for the Plantations Industry and Golden Rock.

In the article it was stated that Jadira Veen and Rueben Thompson of SXM Pride were not present Read more

Protests against cutting Statia Marine Park in half

~ Free-for-all in designated reserves ~

By Suzanne Koelega

THE HAGUE--The St. Eustatius National Marine Park has been reduced by a near 50 per cent through a decision of the St. Eustatius Government. Without the necessary control it basically means the end of the park which will now only consist of the Atlantic side of the island and the reserve at Gallows Bay to make way for the harbour. And, in absence of a legal status, local fishermen have started fishing in the reserves.

The Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) and affiliated nature organisations are extremely disappointed and had asked National Government Representative Gilbert Isabella earlier this week to annul the amendment to the local Maritime Environment Ordinance.

The reduction of the St Read more

NASA responds to predictions of catastrophic asteroid impact and tsunami near Puerto Rico

LONDON, England--End-of-time predictors have claimed that a massive asteroid hurtling towards Earth will destroy civilisation as we know it in September.

They are predicting a cataclysmic event that will trigger a major earthquake and tsunami and will sound humanity’s death knell in just three months’ time, The Mirror reports.

The rapid proliferation of the prediction has now prompted the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to speak out and dismiss the theory as unfounded.

“NASA knows of no asteroid or comet currently on a collision course with Earth, so the probability of a major collision is quite small,” a NASA spokesperson said.

“In fact, as best as we can tell, no large object is likely to strike the Earth any time in the next several hundred years.”

Conspiracy theorists on numerous blogs and websites have come up with the period between September 22 and September 28 as the likely time frame for the “impending catastrophe.”

Some biblical theorists maintain that the events will initiate the Rapture and the start of the seven-year Tribulation.

Others believe the events will spark the emergence of the so-called Illuminati-sponsored New World Order (NWO), which will take charge of world affairs.

Despite NASA’s dismissal, the conspiracy theorists believe that governments of the world’s leading nations are aware of the “impending disaster” and are keeping the information secret to prevent mass panic.

Veterans Today reports that self-proclaimed prophet Reverend Efrain Rodriguez made the original prediction back in 2010 after getting a message from God.

According to Reverend Rodriguez, the asteroid will crash into the ocean off Puerto Rico during the night, triggering a massive earthquake and a tsunami that will advance at 400 miles per hour, destroying everything in its path.

The tsunami will go on to devastate the East Coast of the United States, Mexico, Central and South America, Rodriguez added, urging NASA to issue an alert “so people can be relocated from the areas that are to be affected.”

US-based Veterans Today noted that such a disaster was “not an end-of-the-world event, but one that would likely kill millions this side of the Atlantic and send the world economy into a tailspin.”

Meanwhile, although the latest claims of a killer asteroid are apparently unfounded, scientists have long said that these space rocks pose a major threat to Earth.

“There is an asteroid with our name on it and it will hit us,” Professor Brian Cox told Britain’s MailOnline.

Earth had a “near-miss” only a few months ago.

“We didn’t see it,” Professor Cox said Read more

France beat England 1-0 in World Cup opener

CANADA- - Speedy forward Eugenie Le Sommer struck with a superb long-range goal in the first half to set up a 1-0 victory for France over England in their Group F Women's World Cup opener in Moncton on Tuesday.
  Le Sommer, the French League's top player, took advantage of a defensive mix-up by Katie Chapman and Laura Bassett and fired in a thunderous shot from the edge of the Read more

A400M probe focuses on accidental data wipe

PARIS-- A tiny piece of data needed to run the West's largest turboprop engines is at the centre of a complex chain of events under scrutiny following an Airbus A400M military plane crash last month, several people familiar with the matter said.
  The troop and cargo carrier crashed outside Seville, Spain, on May 9 after three of its huge turboprop engines froze just minutes into a routine, pre-delivery test flight, killing four of its six crew members.
  At the heart of the investigation are crucial computer files that tell Europe's new military carrier, developed at a cost of 20 billion euros ($22.50-billion), how to control its four engines, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
  Computers operating each engine cannot work if this data, which is unique to each of the turboprops, is missing.
  Investigations are at an early stage but the key scenario being examined is that the data -- known as "torque calibration parameters" -- was accidentally wiped on three engines as the engine software was being installed at Airbus facilities.
  An Airbus spokeswoman said the investigation was continuing and it was too early draw conclusions.
  "Safety is our first priority and we will do all that is necessary to get the full picture of what could have led to this tragic accident and take the necessary action," she said, declining comment on any of the points in this article.
  European NATO buyers have now been instructed not to use the Airbus computer system that was used to conduct the software installation on the A400M, people familiar with the order said.
  Investigators are poring over maintenance records to see how safety procedures failed to notice the erased parameters.
  But the combination of lost data and incomplete checks may also have exposed a vulnerability in the amount of information provided to the pilots as they prepared for the maiden flight of the plane, which had been sold to Turkey.
  Under the A400M's design, the first warning pilots would receive of the engine data problem would be when the plane was 400 feet (120 metres) in the air, according to a safety document seen by Reuters Read more

The dump’s smoke is killing us and no MP cares

Dear Editor,

The dump (aka Mount Garbage) caught fire on May 2nd, 2015, and since then it has been emitting toxic smoke every day. That is well over 1 month (!) ago. Like many persons living and working in the greater Philipsburg area, I have also been suffering from frequent headaches and sore throat since the big fire. Depending on the wind direction, it can affect the entire Philipsburg area. On bad days, the smoke can even be smelled as far away as Caribbean Cinemas in Cole Bay/Simpson Bay.

It's therefore mind-boggling (but very telling) that up to now, no MP has raised the issue in Parliament and earmarked it as priority number one, as the smoke is poisoning a large part of the St Read more

Editorial - Think big, start small

That emotions reportedly ran high during Thursday night’s meeting with local bus and taxi drivers may have had something to do with the recent special controls on public transportation operators (see Saturday paper). The Control Unit checked 14 buses and had two towed, while fines were issued for driving without a permit and even for being improperly dressed, among other things.

Legitimate operators actually should be happy with these actions. After all, there have been many complaints about illegal competition from so-called “gypsy drivers.”

Better regulating the industry and enforcing the rules also was a topic during the consultation with stakeholders by Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication (TEATT) Minister Claret Connor and his team Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:---- Interpol St. Maarten as part of the St Maarten Police Force, in cooperation with the St. Maarten office of the Attorney General Mr. Taco Stein, made 2 arrests on Friday June 5th 2015 around 03.50 p.m. in the area of Cole Bay.
On request of the Department of Justice in Miami USA, two British citizens were arrested in a case of involuntary manslaughter and false official statements, committed in the period of 2011/2012.
The arrested suspects are a 50 year old man with initials C.J and a 47 year old woman with the initials A.G Read more

Editorial - Hands-off approach

It may not seem that important, but two Supervisory Board members at Curaçao’s ABC Bus Company were ordered to pay back an allowance they had given themselves to take over the daily management (see related article). They had done so after the director suddenly died in January, leaving the government-owned entity without a Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

The duo reasoned that as a result of Corporate Governance it would take quite some time before a successor could be appointed and the work had to continue in the meantime Read more

Abattoir in Grand Case is finally inaugurated

MARIGOT--After false starts, debates and long periods of dormancy when the file was shelved, the long-awaited abattoir in Mill Run, Grand Case, finally reached the finish line and was inaugurated Tuesday in the presence of elected officials and the operators of the facility.

President of the Territorial Council Aline Hanson in her address noted the then Municipal Council in 2001 first voted in favour of the construction of an abattoir before chronicling a time-line of events where the project frequently stalled over the years.

Although the building was completed in 2009 one of the main setbacks was the delay in obtaining sanitation and hygiene certification and various modifications had to be made, particularly in terms of the building's proximity to the adjacent Central Kitchen, which in itself was a point of controversy.

The 1,070,000 euro cost of the building was financed by Europe, the State, the Region and the Department, and in part by the then Commune of St Read more

Sapphire will not be sold, resort to rebrand, renovate

CUPECOY--After a period of quiet following the news in late January that timeshare exchange network RCI had suspended its relationship with Sapphire Beach Club and Resort, some Sapphire timeshare owners were informed via newsletter over the weekend that the resort would be going through renovations and had signed a preliminary agreement at the end of 2014 "initiating the process of affiliation to a prestigious hotel chain" that remained unnamed.

The newsletter item also disclosed that the property would not be sold, which had been a subject for speculation by many.

RCI had not disclosed any reasoning for the suspension in its notice, but it was understood to be tied to the property's multiple maintenance issues Read more

Editorial - The last say

While concerns remain over the recent sudden announcement that St. Maarten Student Support Services S4 would be discontinued effective July 1, discussions on the move by Education Minister Rita-Bourne Gumbs with a group of those directly impacted and Members of Parliament (MPs) in the Netherlands (see related article) probably will have been at least somewhat reassuring. The intention apparently is to continue the adjustments as planned, so it's good that the person politically responsible for the decision was able to provide an explanation.

Perhaps it was the air in The Hague, because the Inter-Parliamentary Kingdom Consultation IPKO turned out to be a positive encounter as well, leading to consensus among the four delegations on the framework for a kingdom dispute regulation Read more

Agreement is reached on dispute regulation format

THE HAGUE--Following intense discussions on Thursday and many years of delay, the Parliaments of Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten finally reached an agreement on the dispute regulation (geschillenregeling) for the Kingdom. Rulings of the body in charge of the dispute regulation will be binding rather than a mere advice, which is a major victory for the islands.

Besides the aspect of a binding ruling, the delegations agreed to give several pointers for the four governments at the Kingdom Conference in Curaçao on June 16 Read more

Editorial - Same criteria

Sometimes a point made in this column can lead to misunderstanding. One hardly can be against expanding the number of cabinet members from the current five to the normal seven mentioned in the Constitution, but the fact is that it really would be worthwhile only if the persons involved prove an added value.

Moreover, no obvious objection exists to reappointing parliamentarian Maurice Lake – who apparently is very interested – as VROMI minister, especially as he has held the position before Read more