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PHILIPSBURG–The National Alliance (NA) has raised its concerns about “last minute” postponement of Tuesday’s parliament sitting on spatial development with Spatial Development and Infrastructure Minister Miklos Giterson.
The meeting was postponed the day before it was to convene based on an e-mail from Giterson. The e-mail did not state “any reason whatsoever” for the postponement, said NA in a press statement. MPs were notified of the postponement by Parliament, also via e-mail, around 7:30pm Monday.
This postponement comes “on the heels of the months-long discussions, notifications, media reports and public discourses on the manner in which meetings are being called, and the backlog of pending meetings,” said NA. The postponement is “unacceptable and an affront to Parliament and by extension the people we represent, the people of Sint Maarten.
“This also amidst the discretion being exercised by the chair in recent months not to honour the requests for urgent meetings, specifically by the minority in Parliament, when we attempt to hold government to account related to topics of interest to the wellbeing of the people of St. Maarten,” argued NA.
The postponement was received late Monday after the suspension of the urgent meeting about the airport loan/grant in which MPs expressed concern about the conditions accepted by government in addition to those agreed to receive the funds in the first place.
Also, in that meeting MP Christophe Emmanuel (NA) entered a motion of no confidence against Tourism and Economic Affairs Minister Stuart Johnson that was co-signed by all NA and United St. Maarten Party (US Party) members.
The coalition did not have a majority in Parliament at the time of Monday’s adjournment on the airport topic and it was “highly likely that a supportive majority would also not be in place for the continuation … had it taken place on Tuesday,” said NA. Such an occurrence would have left the coalition open for even more motions of no confidence which could have been voted on and passed.
If the lack of majority was the reason for adjourning the Monday meeting on the airport, “then the people of St. Maarten should sit up and take notice of the obvious manipulations taking place at this time,” said NA.
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The meeting was postponed the day before it was to convene based on an e-mail from Giterson. The e-mail did not state “any reason whatsoever” for the postponement, said NA in a press statement. MPs were notified of the postponement by Parliament, also via e-mail, around 7:30pm Monday.
This postponement comes “on the heels of the months-long discussions, notifications, media reports and public discourses on the manner in which meetings are being called, and the backlog of pending meetings,” said NA. The postponement is “unacceptable and an affront to Parliament and by extension the people we represent, the people of Sint Maarten.
“This also amidst the discretion being exercised by the chair in recent months not to honour the requests for urgent meetings, specifically by the minority in Parliament, when we attempt to hold government to account related to topics of interest to the wellbeing of the people of St. Maarten,” argued NA.
The postponement was received late Monday after the suspension of the urgent meeting about the airport loan/grant in which MPs expressed concern about the conditions accepted by government in addition to those agreed to receive the funds in the first place.
Also, in that meeting MP Christophe Emmanuel (NA) entered a motion of no confidence against Tourism and Economic Affairs Minister Stuart Johnson that was co-signed by all NA and United St. Maarten Party (US Party) members.
The coalition did not have a majority in Parliament at the time of Monday’s adjournment on the airport topic and it was “highly likely that a supportive majority would also not be in place for the continuation … had it taken place on Tuesday,” said NA. Such an occurrence would have left the coalition open for even more motions of no confidence which could have been voted on and passed.
If the lack of majority was the reason for adjourning the Monday meeting on the airport, “then the people of St. Maarten should sit up and take notice of the obvious manipulations taking place at this time,” said NA.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/84701-na-questions-last-minute-postponement-of-meeting
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