Grisha resigns from UP Party and continues to Stand 4 U | SOUALIGA NEWSDAY

SINT MAARTEN (PHILIPSBURG) – Member of Parliament (MP) Grisha Heyliger Marten on Thursday afternoon made a statement to the people of Sint Maarten with respect to current political developments.

MP Heyliger Marten’s statement reads as follows:

During the past 12 years…I have campaigned and helped organize 5 elections on behalf of the UP Party. From its inception with: Let’s Team UP in 2010, to We Ready in 2014, All the way UP in 2016 and to “United we can” in 2018.

And the most recent, the Stand UP 2020 campaign, which was personally dubbed, by my person. The campaign slogan at the time was chosen, because we believed it was time for the UP party to stand up and fight for true democracy for the People of St. Maarten.

My personal campaign slogan became a spin-off of that slogan: Stand 4 you.

However, after becoming elected as member of parliament in February 2020, 2nd Vice Chair in November 2020 and the President of Parliament in November 2021, never in my wildest dreams did I foresee that I would have to be standing UP for myself… against ‘for most’ those in my own party, a party that I once helped build…

During the past 30+ months in office:

I’ve been called emotional.

been told, “ah Grisha, that’s politics, deal with it…”

been called dumb, publicly.

experienced being threatened for following the rules of order.

been told that when a decision is made, ‘without my input’, that I must simply agree.

been chastised by those who tried to weaponize my husband’s legal battles against me

been lied to, manipulated, and bullied…

All of the above were statements and actions made, for the most, by men in the inner circle of the UP Party…

Today the UP party has perpetuated a climate in which men can speak and act against women in these despicable ways, and women are to remain submissive when spoken to. But not this woman….you got the wrong woman.

• Today, I stand up not only for myself but for all the women in SXM that have been chastised, demonized by being called, “An angry black woman” and simply set aside and muzzled in the political man-made arena.
• Today, I stand tall and will never bow down or submit to inequality.
• I stand UP against weak men out there that will never understand the true value of a woman and believe that its ok to be disrespectful to us.

I will not let their personal agenda and chauvinistic egos stop me from standing UP for the people of SXM. Nor will I ever allow myself to lose sight of who I am just to satisfy the political agenda of a selective few.

This woman you see here today is a woman striving towards doing right by the people of this country, because St. Maarten deserves better.

This woman you see here today is a woman who has been raised with the principles of integrity, dignity, and most importantly a woman of faith.

A woman who isn’t afraid to stand alone, remain true to herself, and do the best that she can for this country and its people. So that I am able to look in the mirror and be proud of who is looking back at me.

I embrace every challenge and every weapon formed against me as a means to learn and grow even stronger and use it as motivation to continue working loyally for the people of SXM.

Today I say with mixed feelings, that the UP party is no longer recognizable as the party I’ve grown to love, that I supported, helped brand and build. I can’t even begin to explain what the UP party stands for anymore. The green house is in such disarray financially and has been led rudderlesly to an oblivion, with no vision.

It has been broken into splinters and I often times found myself wondering where could I even start with putting it all back to its former glory.

With that being said, I would like to hereby tender my resignation from the UP party effective immediately.

In closing, I would like to thank the original and official board members of the UP party which was in installed through the congress of Nov 2019:

Former UP board member Mrs. Silvia Meyers, Former UP board member Mr. Mike Granger, existing board members Mr. Alfred Halley, Ms. Gina Illidge and Ms. Claudia Lista.

Also to the associate board members: Mr. Francisco La Croes, Mr. Alston Lourens and Mr. Cresburk Browne.

I would like to thank all the candidates for giving me the opportunity to serve as a UP candidate elect, because rightfully so, I did not obtain this seat on my own.

And last but surely not least, I would like to thank my husband, whom as we all know will not be in the political arena any time soon or potentially not ever…I thank you for simply loving me, because ultimately in the end that’s all that counts, your undying and unfailing love for me.

And as the wife of the founding father of the UP party it’s been my pleasure to serve in this party as the second overall highest vote getter of the party since its inception…of course on the curtail of my husband….

I would like to leave all the UP members with this last statement, and please listen keenly:

It is not the party that makes the people, it’s the people that make the party. It’s the people that give it the warmth and the character to function on behalf of the people of SXM.

I will continue to be your humble servant and Stand 4 you and always choose Soualiga first, even if it means me having to stand alone.

Thank You