Jason Rogers
~ Rogers: Decision was not easy to make ~
PHILIPSBURG--The conducting of an election in the short term might be affected, as all the members of the Central Voting Bureau have made their positions available over concerns about the planned election dates.
Central Voting Bureau Chairperson Jason Rogers confirmed to The Daily Herald on Tuesday that all members of the bureau had made it known on Monday evening that they had made their positions available and had formally submitted their letter on Tuesday informing caretaker Prime Minister Leona Romeo-Marlin, Governor Eugene Holiday and the Nominations Committee.
The Nominations Committee nominates persons for the Central Voting Bureau and consists of a representative each of the Joint Court of Justice, Vice-Chair of the Council of Advice, and Chairperson of the General Audit Chamber.
In addition to Rogers, other members who made their positions available are Tamara Richardson, Anastacio Baker, Cindy Marica and Melissa De La Rosa.
According to Rogers, the decision was not an easy one to make. He said the move was based on concerns of the committee about elections.
The move by the bureau members to make their positions available might put a damper on elections, as new members will have to be appointed in accordance with the law. This process can take time. New members have to be appointed at least 30 days prior to Nomination Day. A number of measures are needed before a new bureau is installed, including the vetting of the credentials of candidate members, the preparation of “landsbesluiten” (national decrees) and the ratification of the appointments by the governor.
The Central Voting Bureau is an institution enacted by Government to execute the voting and election procedures as stipulated and regulated in the Electoral Ordinance. The bureau operates independently from parliament and government. Its general function is to ensure that the entire election process, which includes the nominations, the voting and the determination of the outcome of the election, is conducted in accordance with the applicable laws.
Rogers had outlined the bureau’s concerns in a detailed letter to Minister of General Affairs Leona Romeo-Marlin and Chairperson of Parliament William Marlin on Wednesday, September 25.
In the letter, Rogers said that having parliamentary elections on November 25, 2019, can be considered an infringement on the Electoral Ordinance and the Constitution, and as a result of this the Central Voting Bureau, “being a guardian of the entire democratic/electoral process, will be prevented and/or unable to properly execute its duties in an honourable manner and as per the oath taken by all members at their appointment.”
National Decree #2019/1482 of Monday, September 23, 2019, which was published in a special edition of the National Gazette of September 24, 2019, announced that the current Parliament of St. Maarten would be dissolved effective December 23, 2019, and a new election to elect Members of Parliament would take place on November 25, 2019. As per the decree, nomination of candidates would take place on October 2.
In the letter, the Central Voting Bureau said it is most of all concerned about the legal timeframes it has to take into consideration, as well as the rights of possible new political parties that may want to run in the election.
As per Article 22, Paragraph Four of the Electoral Ordinance, three weeks prior to Nomination Day the Chairman of the Central Voting Bureau needs to announce the possibility for candidates to be nominated. “I am unable to meet this requirement as the three weeks prior to Nomination Day lie in the past,” Rogers said in his letter last week.
Only eligible voters are allowed to cast their votes in an election. The voters’ registry is closed 30 days prior to Nomination Day. Given that Nomination Day is on October 2, the process of closing the voters’ registry has not been followed, according to the Central Voting Bureau.
Also, the decree indicating the colours that can be used for the lists of political parties participating in an election must be issued 14 days prior to the date of nomination. As there are only nine days between the date of the National Decree #2019/1482 and Nomination Day, the requirement as per Article 36, Paragraph Two of the Electoral Ordinance cannot be met.
As new and de-registered political parties need to be registered at least six weeks prior to Nomination Day it would not be possible for certain new and existing parties to participate in the November 25, 2019, parliamentary election, the Central Voting Bureau said.
With the recent resignation of one member and one extraordinary member of the Central Voting Bureau, the Bureau would be shorthanded during the November election as, under the Electoral Ordinance, the appointment of members and extraordinary members should take place at least 30 days prior to Nomination Day, Rogers stated in outlining another point of concern pertaining to the November 2019 elections.
“The Central Voting Bureau deems the foregoing very worrisome, as it would not be conducive to the democratic process of the country. Moreover, this can be deemed as said persons – that were possibly intending to contend in parliamentary election – being deprived of their right to [nominate – Ed.] themselves, which can be argued is a violation of their constitutional right to [nominate] themselves. This is an internationally established right of a person,” the letter read.
Rogers said the Bureau is cognizant that Article 59 of the constitution demands that the decision to dissolve parliament also entail the obligation to hold new parliamentary elections and that the first meeting of the newly elected MPs be convened three months after the decision to dissolve parliament.
“We are also cognizant of the fact that the constitution is a higher hierarchal order than the electoral ordinance. However, the right to [nominate] oneself on a list of choice – which includes on a new list or on an existing list that has been de-registered and would now like to reregister – is a constitutional right,” the letter read.
“In addition, the electoral ordinance is of a higher hierarchal order than the national decree. It should be noted that in the execution of its task as well as in the decision-making, the Central Voting Bureau indiscriminately applies the electoral ordinance as well as all other applicable legislation.”
Rogers said that, should election proceed at this juncture, the country would be placed in a situation whereby its authoritative decision-making might be questioned.
He stressed in the letter that when parliament was dissolved in 2017, these concerns were also brought forward to the governor and were taken into consideration in the determination of the date of election in 2018.
