Parliament Chair says GEBE disputed the findings as country awaits deeper investigation into fuel clause and high electricity bills
PHILIPSBURG:--- An initial report presented to the government reportedly suggested that N.V. GEBE consumers were being overcharged, but the utility company rejected some of its findings, according to Chairlady of Parliament Sarah A. Wescot-Williams.
Speaking Wednesday on Wendell Moore’s Viewpoint programme, Wescot-Williams said the country is now awaiting a more comprehensive report from the Bureau Telecommunications and Post concerning GEBE’s fuel clause and the high electricity bills burdening consumers.
“We had a report done,” Wescot-Williams said, explaining that Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercelina commissioned the review while exploring possible relief for residents.
According to the Chairlady, BTP worked with the regulatory body in Curaçao to prepare the initial report.
“Imagine this is what people are hearing — suggesting that we were being overcharged,” she said. “That’s what was in that report that was presented to the government.”
Wescot-Williams said GEBE did not agree with the report or some of its findings.
“So now we are waiting again to see what this more in-depth report by BTP is going to yield and what it is going to tell us about this issue of the fuel clause and the high bills,” she stated.
Her disclosure raises serious questions about what the initial review found, the extent of any possible overcharging, the period examined and whether consumers could be entitled to relief if the findings are confirmed.
No details were provided during the interview about how much consumers may have been overcharged or whether the initial report recommended refunds, credits, or changes to the fuel clause calculation.
Parliament must follow through
Wescot-Williams said practically every parliamentary faction has submitted written questions about GEBE and requested follow-up meetings with the government.
She maintained that Parliament must do more than ask questions and pass motions. The government must be called to account for what it has done with Parliament’s decisions.
Following the recent 2026 budget debate, Wescot-Williams said she told the government Parliament would record its commitments and expected ministers to return within about a month with progress reports on the motions adopted.
“I expect that in a month or so, you need to be able to come back and give Parliament exactly, on every motion that was passed, where are you?” she said. “What have you done? What have you not been able to do?”
She argued that the same accountability must apply to GEBE, waste management, poverty, affordability, and other issues affecting residents.
“Report after report” but no alternative energy
Wescot-Williams also criticized the slow progress toward alternative energy, saying Sint Maarten continues to hear about studies and plans without seeing sufficient tangible results.
“We’re still talking about alternative energy, report after report, but we’re not seeing anything yet,” she said.
The Chairlady acknowledged that the public is becoming impatient with explanations, reports and prolonged government processes while households continue struggling with high energy costs.
She said residents have a legitimate right to ask whether GEBE’s fuel clause and fuel costs are being calculated correctly.
“This is a very valid question that people have,” Wescot-Williams stated.
Economic growth not reaching everyone
The Chairlady also highlighted what she described as a serious disconnect between reports of a growing economy and the daily reality of residents living in poverty.
According to Wescot-Williams, official figures point to increased cruise and stayover arrivals and an expanding economy. However, people remain unemployed, workers are trapped at the minimum wage, and families continue approaching elected officials for assistance.
“The economy of Sint Maarten is blooming. We look at numbers — more visitors, more cruise visitors, more stayover visitors,” she said. “But then there’s the side where there are people living in poverty.”
She questioned whether continuing to import workers through employment permits is justified while residents remain unemployed.
“Don’t we have that labor here?” she asked. “There is definitely a disconnect between what we’re seeing there and what we’re hearing on the ground.”
Tax reform stalled since 10-10-10
Wescot-Williams further criticized the pace of tax reform, noting that St Maarten inherited most of its tax legislation from the former Netherlands Antilles when it attained country status on October 10, 2010.
She said it was already clear then that the country’s tax system required a complete overhaul. Tax reform was again included in the country package in 2020, but tangible results remain limited.
“It has taken so much time,” she said.
Wescot-Williams argued that urgent reforms should be removed from the broader process and handled separately when possible. She cited the taxation of pension income earned by elderly residents as an area requiring immediate attention.
According to the Chairlady, Finance Minister Marinka Gumbs is working on the issue of pension payments being added to other earnings and pushing some elderly residents above the tax threshold.
“These are direct issues that are affecting our people right now,” she said.
Country needs a course correction
Wescot-Williams said government ministries may be working hard to maintain their daily operations, but existing procedures are failing to produce results quickly enough in several critical areas.
She identified tax reform, zoning, energy policy, poverty, the cost of living and support for elderly residents as matters requiring a different approach.
“Some of the processes which right now are in place do not suffice,” she said. “We need to make some course corrections.”
The Chairlady insisted that when government cannot fulfill a commitment, it owes the public a clear explanation.
“If government promises, then they either have to deliver or tell us why not,” Wescot-Williams said. “Let people know why something they expect to happen is taking so long.”
