Some MPs during the closing of the 2023 -2024 Parliamentary year on Monday.
PHILIPSBURG--The legislature drew the curtains on the 2023-2024 Parliamentary year during a special sitting on Monday in which the various faction leaders delivered addresses highlighting accomplishments recorded, failures and issues that should be addressed (see related stories).
Chairperson of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams said the theme for the new Parliamentary year, which opens today, Tuesday, will be: “Uncovering and supporting agriculture and sustainable agricultural practices.”
She said the theme seeks to highlight sustainability in the community and specifically sustainable practices and methods currently being used by local leaders and pioneers in the agriculture sector. The aim is to secure food security.
According to Wescot-Williams, these initiatives provide concrete and insightful examples of how a sector such as agriculture can mean so much fort the community of St. Maarten on different fronts.
She explained that the legislature will sit in a meeting of the Central Committee on September 11, at 11:00am., to receive an update and go into discussions with Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunications (TEATT) Grisha Heyliger-Marten regarding agriculture in St. Maarten.
Wescot-Williams highlighted several issues that were important and needed to be addressed. These include kingdom relations and ongoing discussions with dispute regulation.
“There are many challenges before us, but unless we address the fact that we are operating in a party political system, nevertheless continuing in the dynamics and direction of a more personal political system, we will have to make a choice as to what it is and what it will be, because we can change starting from the rules of order right up to the Constitution, but if we allow the personal political system to continue without being challenged then we will constantly be facing issues in this respect that would jeopardized the stability of the country,” stated the Parliament Chair.
Wescot-Williams said she was heartened by the presentations made by MPs and indicated that with the resolves expressed, many good things can happen in the new Parliamentary year and in the upcoming governing term.
