UD leader Sarah Wescot-Williams.
PHILIPSBURG--The Daily Herald will be publishing the responses of leaders of the various political parties contesting the January 9 snap parliamentary election who respond to a number of standard questions posed by this newspaper, over the next few days leading up to the election. Here is the first instalment from United Democrats (UD) leader Sarah Wescot-Williams.
The Daily Herald: St Maarten does not have money. Government’s coffers are drying up fast and the economy is still reeling from the effects of Hurricane Irma. What are your party’s concrete short- and long-term plans to increase income for government?
Wescot-Williams: While we are surely not out of the woods and we have big challenges with government finances, had the reconstruction of some critical projects not been politicised the way they were and some others continue to be, we would have been further along on the way to recovery.
Our solution is to follow through with the financial recovery plan as developed by the UD-led coalition and the plans derived therefrom, such as the tax reform plan.
The Daily Herald: Education is in shambles – from claims that the FBE [Foundation-Based Education – Ed.] system is not working the way it should, to the shortage of educators and students underperforming in some vocational sectors and challenges in the tertiary education system – things are not well. What are your top three priorities for education and how do you plan to achieve them?
Wescot-Williams: Here again, many challenges, but also achievements need to be acknowledged. Look at our high school results, we have compulsory education, post-secondary vocational education, etc. The UD agrees that it is time to look at the schools’ curricula based on our current realities and global agendas, such as the SDGs [Sustainable Development Goals]. Priorities: Special needs education, USM [University of St. Martin] and higher vocational education.
The Daily Herald: What are your plans to address the challenges in the labour sector such as unemployment?
Wescot-Williams: Facilitate job creation in the private sector through stimulation of investments and incentives, roll out public projects, continue projects such as NIPA [National Institute for Professional Advancement], and better matching available jobs with job seekers, creating a realistic unemployment scheme.
The Daily Herald: The burgeoning landfill situation is getting out of control and while there have been meetings and proposals, etc., no government has been able to bring to fruition a permanent long-term sustainable waste-to-energy solution. What is your party’s concrete long-term plan for the landfill and what is your timeline to achieve this?
Wescot-Williams: Through the UD insistence, this project has been designated national priority status. The preparations for a permanent solution have been put with the NRPB [National Recovery Programme Bureau]. The World Bank has been commissioned with the study for the permanent solution, which study is in its final stages. Financing is available.
The critical question that needs to be answered is, will World Bank procedures allow a speedy implementation or should other financing routes be pursued for the execution of the Solid Waste Management Plan.
The Daily Herald: What is your party’s plan to put roofs over the heads of the many residents who are still living under tarpaulins and leaky roofs since Hurricane Irma?
Wescot-Williams: Given the slow progress with this project, the criteria for assistance need to be reviewed and the housing reality in St. Maarten be considered, such as ownership, rental, inheritance, etc. The solution, however, cannot solely focus on the “roof repair” programme, but needs to include the overall housing conditions in many of our districts, where land rental prevails. Public/private partnerships are crucial and the SMHDF [St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation] needs to be revamped.
The Daily Herald: What is your position on the future of Port St. Maarten? Do you think it needs a strategic partner and, if not, how do you propose to lift the public company out of its current debt of roughly US $200 million?
Wescot-Williams: I am yet to see the RFP [request for proposal] from the port, soliciting interested strategic partners. I must assume that this RFP, if such exists, will be primarily to attract investments and not solely to outsource the management of the port.
The million-dollar question (no pun intended) will then be what are the conditions from potential strategic partners? How will this affect employment, our competitive position, our control, etc. Furthermore, the legal issues facing our port cannot be neglected.
The Daily Herald: The electorate has been forced to go to the polls almost every year because of the current electoral system. There has been talk about electoral reform for many years, but the issue was never concretely addressed. What concrete plan or proposal will your party pursue to address this issue once and for all and what is your timeline to achieve this?
Wescot-Williams: There is no “once and for all” in this respect; it will be an ongoing process, ironing out the kinks as we go along.
The “snap” election must be fundamentally reviewed, not only accommodated in our electoral laws. It must be contextualised in our constitution.
Same goes for the ministerial responsibility. Expand on article 33 of the constitution. The “perks” of MPs who declare themselves independent must be cut. I am not a “free mandate at all cost” fan. We hold on too strongly to constitutional provisions that we have inherited, without questioning their suitability to our situation.
First steps: address the full-time issue of MPs; institute a form of arbitrage; review legislation and processes (rules of order of parliament) that institutionalise the rogue behaviour of MPs; and make government more accountable to parliament as a whole.
The Daily Herald: The Pointe Blanche prison has been plagued by many challenges over the years and the situation has reached a breaking point. What are your party’s plans for the prison and does your party intend to make finances available for the much-needed construction of a new prison? How big of a priority is this for you?
Wescot-Williams: Improve detention conditions overall, but the focus should be on reduction, not expansion, of prison facilities through strong resocialisation programmes, alternative punishments and speedy trials. Youth detention must continue to have a special emphasis, such as the Miss Lalie Centre. This calls for a common vision on justice matters.
The Daily Herald: How would your party address issues such the absence of a functioning Rental Committee; Casino Gaming Board; and Tourism Authority?
Wescot-Williams: Rental Committee law and policies must be updated, the Gaming Board (not only casinos) is long overdue and the question is why? A well-functioning, non-politicised Tourism Authority is critical for a collective management of the most important pillar of our economy.
The Daily Herald: Should your party be elected, will your MPs take a salary cut of 10 per cent and what definitive steps would be taken to achieve this?
Wescot-Williams: This should not be a symbolic gesture, but a structural review of the salaries and benefits of political-office-holders, such as the full-time position of MPs, financial disclosure, non-compatibilities, “unemployment” payments, etc.
The Daily Herald: What are your party’s plans to permanently (not temporarily) address the traffic situation around the country?
Wescot-Williams: Structurally revamp the complete current road network into a multi-year plan; sustainably engineer and expand additional road networks to address congestion points, and improve/develop dependable and affordable public transportation methods, and limit or phase the importation of cars.
Priority: Link 6, funding available from the Trust Fund.
The Daily Herald: How does your party plan to reform the national health insurance system? Do you generally agree with the draft law in its present state, or will you propose a new system and, if so, what would be the key factors of this new system?
Wescot-Williams: Much work has gone into the draft proposal for universal healthcare coverage, which the UD has out on the table. It compasses all of the components for such a system to work. It is a big project, might have to be tweaked as we go along, but no need to invent the wheel. And it should be introduced in phases. We have to “save our funds”!
The Daily Herald: In the immediate aftermath of the election on January 9, which party/parties would your party like to work with in a coalition setting and why?
Wescot-Williams: I usually don’t answer this question in a direct who or who not, but given my experiences with the Christian Party, I can work with them in the future. Other than that, I don’t exclude any party, but positions the parties hold and are willing or not to compromise on could be an impediment to working with them.
Wescot-Williams’ closing remarks: Much has been said above and there are several priority areas for the United Democratic Party, such as financial restructuring and the economy, housing, youth, social affairs, jobs, environment, etc., but stability and electoral reform are critical areas to make any real progress with the issues as outlined.
We also need to step away from the personal politics, as this is a recipe for “ship jumping”. 2020, being the first decade of country status, we need to review our management of the country St. Maarten. I am convinced that it will be proven that personal political agendas often got in the way of progress.
The UD stresses in this campaign, and in the governing period that is to follow, more dialogue with civil society, business and labour. This approach has proven to work well in the past in the area of labour, health etc.
The social challenges and outright risks for our future make it crucial that we strengthen and empower our communities to be the catalysts for change from the bottom up. If we don’t understand the interrelationship of government finances, the economy and the social structures, we are doomed to fail at the planning stage.
