PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – Independent Member of Parliament MP Christophe Emmanuel is calling on the people of St. Maarten to recognize the governing coalition and the Prime Minister for what they are: Deceitful politicians with no plans for the country.
“By now, based on their actions over the past two weeks, including disastrous appearances on radio and social media, it should be more than clear to the people, the type of empty representation they have in government,” the MP said.
He said the UN petition that was supposed to focus on decolonization, has further exposed rifts within the governing coalition whose members are “all over the place” when it comes to this document. The MP said the Prime Minister has yet to answer if she supports the initiators of the petition with a simple yes or no. “Do you support the initiators of the petition yes or no? Do you support the petition yes or no?
“The only thing the PM has said is that she has only read the conclusion of the petition and her impression is that it is ‘only’ and investigation. Only an investigation? What happens when that investigation concludes and is in favor or against St. Maarten? What is the Prime Minister’s intended actions in that regard?” The MP asked, adding that it is incredible that the PM of the country not read a petition with the potential to affect the country on all levels.
He said the Moody’s downgrading of St. Maarten is yet another example of the confusion this government is creating with investors worldwide, by not clearly stating its positions with the Netherlands and showing no creativity whatsoever when it comes to growing the economy post-COVID, attracting investors and the ability for St. Maarten to fund initiatives on its own.
He said it is “deceitful” for the PM to act as if the petition will have no bearing whatsoever on the country. To diminish the petition by stating it is just an investigation, the MP said, is a deliberate act of evasion and not informing the people of what the country would have to prepare for.
Most notably, the MP continued, there is no mention from the PM about what the petition means for the Caribbean Body for Reform and Development (COHO). He pointed out that the PM and her support in Parliament once again lied to the people last Friday by implying that the COHO has nothing to do with the country package. “From day one I have said they are part and parcel the same thing and cannot be separated,” the MP re-iterated.
“If the petition was not important then State Secretary Knops would not have written to the PM last week asking for a re-confirmation of her government’s support for the country packages and COHO. He called the petition an unpleasant surprise because he foresees that the petition can present an issue for the COHO in the future. The Prime Minister responded by assuring the State Secretary that support from government and Parliament is guaranteed,” Emmanuel said.
The MP explained that coalition MP’s appeared on several radio programs last week and “totally demolished the COHO” and the way the Dutch blackmailed (their words) St. Maarten. “Yet we have a PM that is determined to push it through. So what happens if the COHO is confirmed to be against St. Maarten’s autonomy? Will we roll back everything? What is the plan? These are developments that affect your country at the highest levels and you cannot say what the plan is? What will these MPs and the PM do if the petition concludes that the COHO infringes on our autonomy? The MP said.
“I hope the PM is not playing this dangerous game of taking the liquidity money from the Dutch, only to see Parliament vote against the COHO, then say Parliament has free will to vote as they please. That is a dangerous game because the PM continuously creates the impression to Knops in writing that her support in Parliament for COHO is assured. The cutest recent attempt to re-enforce that notion was to take a group picture on the floor of Parliament to show Knops,” MP Emmanuel said.
He said that “since it is said” that Parliament cannot speak for the people of the country internationally, and only the PM can, the PM should not wait any longer to tell the world what she thinks about the petition that was reported upon worldwide.
MP Emmanuel concluded by re-iterating that he supported the motion because he supports decolonization, which is an unfinished process. As he has since December 2020, the MP stressed that he will not support the establishment of the COHO in any way, shape or form and will not be manipulated into an stance for independence before his people and his country are ready for it economically and on their own terms. “I want to talk about nation building on our terms before even thinking about independence,” he said.
