PHILIPSBURG:--- However, St. Maarten finds itself in a situation which has now become the order of the day. With all the solutions being placed on the table, thus far none have provided the people any plausible guarantee for stability. This for me is the cardinal element that has proved itself to be lacking in all the governing bodies formed thus far since 10-10-10.
It took me three years to come to this conclusion, and once it became a passion, I started my personal little quiet campaign, among the potential candidates across the board, to create a national government. The understanding would have been that parties would agree to work together for this one term to strengthen the island seeing the challenges the island faced with the electoral council, the integrity issues, the CFT and health care. If this could be done, then we would battle together against our challenges so that the island could stabilize and truly build and steel herself to face the future of our island. One four-year term, for the sake of St. Maarten and her people.
I still believe that if we truly want to be mature and disciplined about St. Maarten we would put aside the issues that divide us and work as a country for one term, one four-year term. Beside the above mentioned reasons, a glance at the dump, the vast numbers of members of our community lost while seeking care abroad and not even able to pass their last moments with family members, our desperate need to improve health care, not just the facilities and buildings but the way we CARE for our population, the rapidly growing senior population who are not surviving on the pension provided, demands that we stop and look a little deeper and harder that this possibility. From my observation of the facts since entering politics, no one party can deliver the magic wand, we must work together.
I made the approach before the 2014 elections to all the parties who had an ear, however only one leader, was willing to stop the presses and reach out the olive branch to work towards such an approach. Thus I joined forces with the hope that the concept would take root. As is still evident during the past week, some are still averse to such, and an impasse remains in St. Maarten and the general population along with our international reputation is being weakened with each new government formed.
We need to work harder to regionalize education and ensure that our students and schools are competitive with others in the region and then abroad.
St. Maarten is the smallest country in the Kingdom and has more high councils of state to bear financial responsibility for. These are not only expensive for our government but cumbersome and provide no quick nor effective solutions to any problem the country faces based on the sought outcome stated above (stability).
Another common challenge (across party lines) that the country is (willingly) facing, is the CFT demands which all will agree are necessary but are stifling in the manner in which demands are made, why because, they cannot be met without concurrently making it impossible to solve the pressing needs of the country.
I wish once again, to once request of the political leaders to accept an invitation to, through and attitude of humility and cooperation, engage in talks of strengthening this island by the joining of hands for the remainder of this term and seek points of agreement where parties can work together, at least for one term to solve the pressing needs of the country. Give each party their duties for planning and the execution dependent on a collective decision.
Effect the needed changes in the constitution which would strengthen the electoral process and give our people stability, thus giving our future generation some hope of economic prosperity and stability.
Set a collective priority scale and a timeline towards solving OUR pressing problems. Let us work collectively to create at least one alternative economic pillar. Let us not just tell the Netherlands but let us show them and the rest of the world what St. Maarteners can truly do. Our children are desperate for a sign of hope for their future, let us not disappoint them. We can be men and women of valor and steer this island where we all want to see her go.
