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Governing Program Or Glorified Manifesto?

The long awaited governing program has finally been released under the name “Solidarity for Prosperity.”

I commend the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), comprised of the NA, USP and DP factions, for producing such a colorful and comprehensive document Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Through its work, Transparency International (TI), a global organization, hopes to realize a world in which government, business, civil society and the daily lives of people will be free of corruption. Upon a country’s request, TI assesses its weaknesses and strengths with regard to integrity and good governance. Assessments were conducted in the Netherlands in 2012, for Curaçao in 2013 and for Sint Maarten in 2015.

To be able to assess a country’s integrity, TI looks at several pillars such as the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government, the public sector, law enforcement agencies, etc Read more

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Committees Are The Backbone Of Parliament

The system of parliamentary committees in the Netherlands is considered the backbone of the Dutch parliament. The review further indicates that two thirds of the work of parliament takes place in the committees.

Looking at how the committee system functions, in the parliament of Sint Maarten, we can only sadly conclude that our parliament is not functioning optimally due to the fact that the committees are not functioning.

The Annual Report of the Parliamentary Year 2015-2016 of Sint Maarten gives some insight as to how these committees are functioning Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The system of parliamentary committees in the Netherlands is considered the backbone of the Dutch parliament. The review further indicates that two-thirds of the work of parliament take place in the committees. Looking at how the committee system functions, in the parliament of Sint Maarten, we can only sadly conclude that our parliament is not functioning optimally due to the fact that the committees are not functioning. The Annual Report of the Parliamentary Year 2015-2016 of Sint Maarten gives some insight, as to how these committees are functioning Read more

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Parliament’S Right To Question Government

One of Parliament’s roles is to supervise the functioning of government. And one of its tools to carry out this supervisory function is the right to ask questions as laid down in article 62 of the Constitution.

This entails parliamentarians submitting their queries in writing to the government via the President of Parliament. Article 63 of the Constitution mentions that a Member of Parliament may also invite the ministers to provide information. Article 62 of the Rules of Order of Parliament states that this invitation will be considered by the President of Parliament, if it is supported by at least one other member of parliament Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- One of Parliament’s roles is to supervise the functioning of government. And one of its tools to carry out this supervisory function is the right to ask questions as laid down in article 62 of the Constitution. This entails parliamentarians submitting their queries in writing to the government via the President of Parliament. Article 63 of the Constitution mentions that a Member of Parliament may also invite the ministers to provide information. Article 62 of the Rules of Order of Parliament states that this invitation will be considered by the President of Parliament if it is supported by at least one other member of parliament Read more

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We, The People And Our Representatives In Parliament

Last week, the Office of the Ombudsman held a very successful Open House, with the aim to inform the public of its functioning.

For me, the highlight of the Open house was the very simple, yet profound, presentation given by the Ombudsman herself, Dr. Nilda Arduin. The presentation centered on the topic “We, the People.”

Dr. Arduin pointed out that in a democracy the people rule. She went on to compare a country to a house. As the owners of the house are working people and therefore unable to do their own house chores, they hire a domestic aid or servant to handle the chores and to run the household on their behalf Read more

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