Convinced that her calling is to serve the people of St. Maarten, former Island Council woman, Commissioner, Senator, State Secretary and Minister Maria Buncamper-Molanus will contest the August 29 Parliamentary elections with the United People (UP) party. She will be candidate #21 on the slate.
With an uncontested wealth of experience under her belt since she first entered the political arena in 1995, Buncamper-Molanus said sitting on the sidelines while St. Maarten is in obvious need of stable, visionary leadership, was not an option for her any longer.
“I still have a whole lot to offer,” the former Minister said. “This country that we all love so much is facing a number of issues that are compounded by a void of anything resembling fresh ideas. The search for solutions equal to the scale of our challenges has to be the order of the day. It’s time to get fresh ideas off the sidelines onto the field. I believe this is only possible with the UP,” she added.
Re-entering the political field, Maria is adamant that the people of St. Maarten and potential supporters feel free to approach her and ask her anything they want to. She understands that certain issues might have lived a life of their own and others have tried to define her, but she is prepared to have a truthful and open conversation with the people who she hopes to serve again.
“Wherever you see me and would like anything or any of my campaign issues clarified, please approach me and we’ll have a conversation. I hope you will walk away knowing that while the path to get the chance to help move the country forward is daunting, it’s the only path I know. It’s the pursuit of the possible, not the perfect,” she said.
She continued: “I’m a pragmatist. I look for practical solutions to real problems. My experience, my ability to get things done, my ability to work for common-sense solutions to real life problems, led me to run again. I hope you’ll join me and work together to build up our country and shape a hope filled future.”
Buncamper-Molanus added that she was honored and feels humbled that the leader of the UP Theo Heyliger as well as the board of the party and general party family has accepted her into their ranks. “I promise to work hard to help deliver a victory for UP which will be a victory for St. Maarten.”
As core issues, she will focus on the benefits of an open, accessible government to all, building a strong foundation for economic success and shared prosperity by investing in high quality education, ensuring growth of St. Maarten’s tourism product and build the economy by seeking (then implementing and tracking) practical ideas from all stakeholders and achieving universal health care to guarantee access to health care services for all residents including the elderly and mentally challenged. She will expound on all of these issues in the weeks ahead.
With many accomplishments over the years, her initiatives while in office have strengthened the organization of government through the improvement and streamlining of service delivery and reduction in red-tape.
She accomplished this by spearheading a new business license ordinance that served to alleviate the administration of businesses and government alike, oversaw the automation of the Economic Affairs department, automated the Department of Business Licenses and Permits, implemented effective price controls, streamlined information for potential investors, launched the first Regional Small & medium Enterprises Platform conceived and designed to support and sustain the SME Intermediaries of the Region, ensured that all stakeholders had a say in new policies and legislation and drafted the Economic and Residential Zoning Policy which will contribute to a more structured approach to economic development, to name but a few.
Her initiatives are still the benchmarks used by government to date.
- Wednesday, April 24, 2024
