St. Maarten Christian Party (SMCP) finally attempted to answer a burning question on the minds of many since Member of Parliament (MP) Chanel Brownbill was convicted for tax fraud on Tuesday (see related story).
Why is it alright to form a government with United Democrats (UD) of which Brownbill is part, while working with United St. Maarten Party (US Party) was excluded from the start “out of principle?”
After all, taking that position obviously had to do with the detention of US Party leader Frans Richardson shortly before the election. SMPC leader Wycliffe Smith did not go into this aspect in his latest release, saying only that Brownbill’s – then still pending – case was discussed beforehand with UD and they would deal with the issue from their end.
He further stated that SMCP thus sees no reason to rescind the coalition agreement “signed in the interest of moving St. Maarten forward in the wake of a devastating hurricane. We all agree that St. Maarten definitely cannot afford another fall of government at this point in time.”
Never mind that the latter is not technically possible right now, simply because the new Council of Ministers to be backed by the UD/SMPC minimal majority of eight in the 15-seat Parliament still hasn’t been installed. The argument of the need for political stability under the current circumstances makes sense.
Nevertheless, one could also say that Richardson was never tried nor even officially charged yet, although he has been identified as a suspect in two criminal investigations. Brownbill, on the other hand, received a – partially suspended – prison sentence that he is appealing.
The bottom line is that no matter how you twist it, the reality remains that politics are often more about pragmatism than strictly adhering to ideals.
