Marigot: --- First Vice President Daniel Gibbs is once again under fire, this time SMN News understands that the Director General of Departments of the Collectivity had to confront Gibbs on his portfolios since none of the departments under him is functioning properly. Sources told SMN News that Gibbs has no ideas of his own and he is expecting the staff of the Collectivity to give him ideas to speak about. "While the ideas maybe one thing no one knows where he Gibbs would get the monies from to execute these projects since it is not in the budget" one source said.
Due to the confrontation by the DGS, Gibbs then called an impromptu meeting on Thursday evening and the meeting had to be cancelled because the committee members were informed late Wednesday evening. The only person that showed up to that meeting was Opposition leader Alain Richardson.
SMN News also understands that Gibbs is coming under fire since he is not doing enough in his portfolios and there is a lot going on at the Tourist Office which he Gibbs cannot give clear accountability on.
Additional information provided to SMN News shows that Gibbs and his crew Yann Claeysen went as far as Serbia claiming they went to market the island there when in fact they have relatives living there. The source said this can be proven by bills provided to the tourist office. Another questionable bill was Euros 200 that had to be reimbursed to Clayesen. This money they said was used at a club in Paris at 4 am in the morning. Claeysen they said claimed that they went to a meeting. He was quizzed on the location which turned out to be a club in Paris issued at 4 am in the morning, something the President of the Tourist Board questioned.
Another questionable investment for the President of the Tourist Board and the COM is the purchase of the database ( reservation center) which cost some 230, 000 Euros which was purchased from the old budget which has already been liquidated. SMN News understands that the company from which this database was purchased belong to a close friend of the Director Yann Clayesen. The source said that Claeysen once represented the company in St. Martin four years ago when he tried selling the product to the former president of the board for Euros 60,000. "The most outrageous part is that there was no bidding process for the purchase which is required by law.
SMN News understands that the new board which is headed by Ida Zin Ka Ieu is also looking into the redecoration of the tourist office which cost 57, 000 Euros. Another source said that the painter has even decorated Gibbs house for free after he secured the job at the tourist office.
Right now parties are not speaking about the issues at the Tourist Office since it has become a case for the judges but pundits are already saying that Gibbs may soon have to appear before the prosecutor since the new board already sent a letter with piles on information that needs to be clarified.
