A scene during Tuesday’s virtual CKAIR meeting.
PHILIPSBURG--Members of Parliament’s Committee of Kingdom Affairs and Inter-Parliamentary Relations (CKAIR) raised a number of concerns on Tuesday during their preparatory discussions for the Inter-Parliamentary Kingdom Consultations IPKO, which will be held virtually today Tuesday and tomorrow Wednesday via Pexip.
The meeting began on Monday as a closed-door session. However, members of the committee requested that the meeting be held in an open setting. The meeting was then adjourned also seeing that the committee was awaiting a document it had requested from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Social Affairs VSA regarding the COVID-19 situation in the country.
Concerns surrounding the Caribbean Body for Reform and Development COHO and adding details on certain topics were amongst the issues raised and recommendations made during the meeting.
United Democrats (UD) Member of Parliament (MP) Sarah Wescot-Williams took issue with mention of the amended 2020 budget and the 2021 budget in the draft presentation to be made on behalf of St. Maarten with no explanation as to why the budgets are late.
She said Parliament “very nonchalantly” indicated in the draft that the amended 2020 budget and 2021 budget 2020 would be presented during the second part of February, with no explanation as to why the budget presentation deadlines had been missed. She believes that an explanation as to why the budgets are late should be included in the presentation.
She also suggested that some figures related to the St. Maarten Stimulus and Relief Plan (SSRP), such as how many businesses received assistance, should also be included in the presentation.
United St. Maarten Party (US Party) MP Claudius “Toontje” Buncamper concurred with Wescot-Williams that the reasons for the delay in the budget being presented should be included in the presentation. He also enquired about the role of the Committee for Financial Supervision CFT, the Finance Minister and Parliament in the new entity that will come.
Party for Progress (PFP) MP Melissa Gumbs suggested that information about the country’s cruise sector be included, not just that of the airport.
CKAIR Chairperson William Marlin said Parliament’s secretariat would do its utmost to approach the relevant ministers to request the information needed so that the draft can be adjusted to reflect the MPs’ comments. Once adjusted, the presentation will be shared with MPs prior to the start of the IPKO today. He said there will not be any fundamental changes to the draft, efforts will just be made to adjust and incorporate the suggestions made.
At the start of Tuesday’s CKAIR meeting Second Acting Chairperson of Parliament Grisha Heyliger-Marten told MPs that it had been agreed that during IPKO each country would give an update on the state of affairs of its Parliament in a presentation and that after that presentation there would be time to ask questions.
St. Maarten’s presentation will be made by the CKAIR chairperson on behalf of the St. Maarten delegation and will cover topics such as the state of affairs of Parliament, including issues such as the six factions; new committee; being back in the Legislative Hall following virtual sessions during the lockdown; the budget 2020 amendment and budget 2021; and legislation and motions.
St. Maarten’s presentation will also encompass the recovery of St. Maarten/COVID-19; the Trust Fund/National Recovery Program Bureau (NRPB); the current COVID-19 situation; liquidity support from the Netherlands for the second and third tranches; and COHO.
The St Maarten delegation will include Chairperson of Parliament and delegation leader Rolando Brison, CKAIR Chairman William Marlin, CKAIR Vice Chairperson Grisha Heyliger-Marten, and MPs Claudius Buncamper, Sarah Wescot-Williams, Melissa Gumbs and Christophe Emmanuel.
