State Secretary Knops (front right) being shown a damaged classroom at Sister Marie Laurence Primary School.
~ Dissatisfied with progress, instability ~
PHILIPSBURG–Dutch State Secretary of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Raymond Knops spent his last hours in St. Maarten visiting several reconstruction projects financed via the St. Maarten Reconstruction, Recovery and Resilience Trust Fund.
Knops’ first stop was at a home in Sucker Garden currently being repaired under the auspices of the National Recovery Programme Bureau (NRPB). Knops made a stop at this same house during his last visit to St. Maarten, and it was an opportunity for him to see the progress made, said Laura Bijnsdorp of the Dutch Representation Office in St. Maarten VNP.
Knops and his delegation (comprising NRPB Director Claret Connor and VNP members) then made their way to Sister Marie Laurence Primary School in Middle Region.
The school has been unable to reopen after being damaged by Hurricane Irma in 2017. Knops spoke with Foundation for Catholic Education SKOS President Dr. Marlon Halley, who told him that reconstruction works on the school have yet to be started. A project proposal has been submitted for the school’s rebuilding, but after 18 months nothing has been done.
Halley and other school representatives took Knops on a tour of the compound, highlighting the current state of the building and their vision for the school’s future.
The representatives said the school’s gym hall is one of the hurricane shelters selected by government. However, they noted that in the school’s current state, the gym hall is unfit for that function.
The gym hall is adjacent to the already-structurally-unsound main building. In a hurricane, parts of that building might come loose and damage the hurricane shelter, said the school representatives as they took Knops through a pigeon-infested abandoned classroom with galvanised roofing sheets that were nailed onto bare rafters.
The delegation’s next stop was at Milton Peters College (MPC). Here, Knops was shown the school’s two gym halls, which are also to be used as hurricane shelters in case of a storm. In fact, MPC was opened as a hurricane shelter last week during the anticipated passing of Tropical Storm Jerry.
Knops spoke with Ministry of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI Special Projects Department head Kurt Ruan, who highlighted the planned upgrades to the facility to make it more resilient to hurricanes. These include the installation of new windows and a water tank for storage.
Ruan said MPC has a capacity of 163 persons and is one of 14 government-selected hurricane shelters. Some are to be used as main shelters and others as “recovery shelters,” in which persons can be housed for longer periods after a storm. At recovery shelters there will be special emphasis on sport and recreational facilities as compared to main shelters, Ruan said.
Knops’ final stop was at Waste2Work, a project located at the Red Cross building on Airport Boulevard. Started in November 2018, this project uses discarded materials such as wood, wiring, aluminium, and old licence plates that would have otherwise ended up at the dump and turns them into furniture, according to St. Maarten Red Cross Partnerships Manager Margot Mesnard.
The project also trains St. Maarten youngsters in carpentry and other building skills, said Waste2Work Director Jasper Nijenhuis, adding that 14 persons have come through the training programme thus far. At Waste2Work, Knops spoke with young persons in the programme and was informed of how they make their improvised furniture items.
When asked about his opinion on the pace of St. Maarten’s reconstruction, Knops said that, although they are progressing with some “good” projects, he is dissatisfied with the speed of rebuilding process.
“We can’t lose time. Every week we win in planning is good for the country. We have to put even more efforts, also from the government’s side, to the executive capacity where it is needed. World Bank is doing a lot. But some things have to speed up.
“[Like – Ed.] the case of the airport; it took much too long. One year ago, this proposal was sent and because of a lot of political discussions within Parliament, there was obstruction, objection. This could have started earlier.
“… I am not satisfied, so I think things can go faster if everybody gets his act together and works in the same direction,” said Knops.
According to him, the current political instability will only delay reconstruction further because there is “about to come a time of uncertainty.” This uncertainty casts doubt over “commitments from the political side of St. Maarten towards projects, commitments to do the right things, [and to] civil servants not knowing where to go because the government has fallen [and] a new [person] is somewhere to be sworn in after the elections.” Knops said this situation is worrying.
He also had harsh words to say about his meeting with the St. Maarten Parliament being cancelled. This meeting was scheduled for Wednesday morning, but was called off on Tuesday by Acting Parliament Chairperson Sarah Wescot-Williams due to “confirmed non-attendance of a majority of factions.”
The new parliamentary coalition of nine had indicated earlier that they would not be in attendance because improper procedures had been followed. In a press statement on Tuesday, the new coalition said they had no issue meeting with Knops “once correct procedures are followed.”
“I regret that my invitation … was cancelled at the last moment,” said Knops, adding that on the issue of correct procedures, “I don’t get it. I totally don’t get this bureaucratic manner of thinking.
“If you are talking about good relationships and you show the opposite by cancelling the meeting and immediately afterwards say, ‘He’s welcome, but you have to do it according to the procedures’ … . What procedures? It’s about engagement with each other. … Are we trying to stick to the procedures? Or are we trying to engage with each other?
“… Everybody may have his own opinion, but it is quite normal within the kingdom, or with friendly countries, to engage with each other,” he concluded.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/91232-knops-visits-ongoing-reconstruction-projects
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