MP Christophe Emmanuel
PHILIPSBURG--Independent Member of Parliament (MP) Christopher Emmanuel said on Tuesday that civil servants should not accept having their salaries cut by 12.5 per cent as outlined in the Dutch government’s conditions for the second tranche of liquidity support.
Emmanuel said government is about to “place a burden of suffering upon them [civil servants – Ed.], the likes of which they have never known. He also decried the other financial cuts demanded by the Dutch government as “unfair, unbearable and unacceptable.”
He questioned why the so-called BES islands are not subjected to the same austerity measures. He also took aim at several of the country’s “Dutch” institutions, such as the Governor’s Cabinet, the Prosecutor’s Office, and the Dutch Representation Office VNP.
“It is obvious that this is not about cuts; it’s a realignment of our standard of living and this government has sold us out. They are penny-wise and pound-foolish,” said Emmanuel.
He claimed that “not a single elected representative in St. Maarten can look civil servants in their eyes and tell them, truthfully, how long their salary cut will be in place.”
“But with the COHO [Caribbean Entity for Reform and Development] being in place for six years, civil servants can probably expect the cut to last for quite some time. I do not understand how any MPs who support the COHO can look themselves in the mirror or sleep at night knowing that they have made the lives of their people even more difficult for just a few pennies that will run out in a month,” said Emmanuel.
During an emergency Parliament meeting on Monday, Emmanuel was the only legislator to oppose government concluding a deal for a third tranche of liquidity support and the establishment of COHO.
“There are too many questions unanswered. We do not even know what exactly the Prime Minister [Silveria Jacobs] and her government have negotiated. What we do know is that the PM and [Dutch State Secretary of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations] Knops are taking money out of the pockets of civil servants and semi-public government entities. And for what? Civil servants and their unions should reject every aspect of this entity,” Emmanuel said.
Finance Minister Ardwell Irion has yet to disclose the “true nature” of government’s liquidity position, said Emmanuel.
“And I don’t mean saying that it’s low, or that we are running out of money. Give us details. What are the numbers. How much money do we have? What is the status of our overdraft facilities? How long, truthfully, can we carry on without a measly 60 million [guilders] from the Dutch. And above all, what happens when the 60 million is up? Will we be able then to carry ourselves suddenly?” Emmanuel questioned. “The move to accept this entity shows extreme weakness and borders on cowardice.”
Emmanuel criticised Jacobs for being at the head of a “government of weakness”.
“The PM was the first to proclaim that she will not be the PM to drag St. Maarten back into colonial days. Well guess what, congrats PM, you are exactly that PM. History will not judge you kindly,” Emmanuel concluded.
