PHILIPSBURG--The Electoral Council is now one substitute member short with the resignation of Attorney-at-Law Jeroen Veen.
His resignation was accepted by Governor Eugene Holiday on August 21 and the national decree was published in the September 18 National Gazette (Landscourant). Veen submitted his resignation to the Electoral Council on June 18.
Veen’s decision to resign from the council that oversees the proper registration and financing of political parties in the country stems from the non-regulation of stipends for the members and substitute members of the council.
Contacted by The Daily Herald about his resignation, Veen said: “I preferred to distance myself from this matter and resigning was the best possible choice for me considering the position of the council and the constitutional tasks it is charged with.”
He added that more importantly he was not in agreement with the manner in which the Council “handled/handles this situation.” He, however, declined to further elaborate on the way in which he differed with the council on the situation.
That “matter” as Veen refers to it is the absence of a national decree outlining the financial provisions for members and substitutes. That decree was not in place up to the time of his resignation.
The national decree on stipends for the Electoral Council is specifically called for in the National Ordinance on the Registration and Financing of Political Parties under Article 12. That article states: “The financial provisions for members and alternate members of the Electoral Council shall be regulated by national decree, containing general measures.”
The Electoral Council is an essential part of the country’s electoral procedure.
It operated for the first time for the 2014 Parliamentary elections. The Council is headed by Attorney Bert Hofman and has as vice chairwoman Attorney Cela Richardson-Nicolaas, member Linda Richardson, and substitute member Notary Marlene Mingo. Veen was the second substitute member.
