Minister of Justice Anna Richardson signing the justice legislative package during Wednesday's ceremony.
PHILIPSBURG--Minister of Justice Anna Richardson co-signed the justice legislative package at the Government Administration Building on Wednesday, December 27.
The official signing of the national decrees solidified the legal position of officers and established essential structures for human resources management in the Ministry of Justice.
The signing encompassed the national decree containing general measures for the legal position of officers with police tasks, the new police salary scales and the national decree to enact the legal position and approved function book.
The minister (front, centre) joined by dignitaries and other invited guests.
In her address, Richardson acknowledged the challenges faced on the journey to this point and expressed her pleasure in bringing it to a successful conclusion. She noted the collaborative efforts with Governor Ajamu Baly and highlighted the significance of these crucial documents in establishing proper human resources management in the Ministry of Justice.
She announced that justice personnel will receive individual signed national decrees tailored to their tasks, outlining structured compensation and incorporating benefits and security built into the law. She said this initiative is a testament to the commitment to the well-being of those who tirelessly serve justice.
Richardson also said the focus would now shift to Customs and the prison, with plans already underway to address updates to Customs law and regulate human resource (HR) matters of the prison to align with agreements made with the Committee of Civil Servants Unions (CCSU).
The ministry has approximately 200 individual national decrees ready to send to the government, with the HR department set to initiate the process of sending the first batch for further processing and payment. The goal is to ensure that all 700-plus employees of the ministry receive what is fairly due to them.
According to a press release from the ministry Wednesday evening, the journey to this milestone began in September 2020 and, after navigating legal channels, the Function Book was approved in December 2021. The ministry performed a meticulous task to identify the total debt figure, which amounted to approximately NAf. 40 million.
In July 2023, the completion of debt calculations and projections up to December 31 led to the identification of the debt, requiring an amendment to the 2023 Budget to ensure consistency with payments to justice workers.
Coinciding with the approval of the 2023 budget amendment by the Parliament of St. Maarten, the Ministry of Justice resubmitted the package to the governor, encompassing the function book, the national decree containing general measures of the legal position of officers with police tasks, their new salary scales and its enactment decree.
The minister received the signed justice package from the cabinet of the governor on Friday, December 22.
The minister acknowledged the pivotal role played by Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs, Minister of Finance Arwell Irion and their respective cabinets in shaping the transformative changes reflected in the national decree.
She thanked Governor Baly, former Governor Eugene Holiday, the Ministries of Finance and of General Affairs, the Advisory Council, CCSU, ANTEK, SOAB, Peggy-Ann Brandon, Alvin Daal, Tiffany Glascow, Saskia Thomas-Salomon, the Council of Ministers Secretariat and all Ministry of Justice department heads for their collective efforts.
Special recognition was also given to Members of Parliament (MPs) for their role in the way forward. MPs William Marlin, Angelique Romou, George Pantophlet, Hyacinth Richardson, Sidharth Bijlani, Rolando Brison, Melissa Gumbs and Ludmilla De Weever were acknowledged for their contributions.
