Minister of Finance Hiro Shigemoto says Sint Maarten demands the release and transfer of Naf. 43 million in Turnover Tax (ToT) owed to the island by the former Central Government of the Netherlands Antilles.
This was a point pressed heavily during a meeting between the Committee for Financial Supervision CFT and the Council of Ministers on Thursday morning.
Finance Minister Hiro Shigemoto said the nation is not begging, but demanding its monies. This outstanding sum would greatly help with the erasing of some of the deficit from the 2010 budget and the draft 2011 budget. The draft budget has a Naf. 130 million deficit that government is working on reducing.
The outstanding ToT will cover the Naf. 8.8 million total deficit for the 2010 and put a dent into the deficit for next year.
The outstanding ToT has to be paid out by the Executing Committee ("vereffeningscommissie") for the Division of Assets and Liabilities. Through this committee, the former Antillean Director of Finance needs to be empowered to pay the outstanding bills.
The Naf. 43 million is derived from Sint Maarten’s one per cent of the three per cent ToT levied on the island, but was collected by the Central Government up to October 9, 2010.
"Sint Maarten is held to the letter of the laws and agreements signed, but other entities aren’t and are allowed to abuse the laws to the detriment of the nation. The country started with a deficit due to neglect and abuse from the former Netherlands Antilles," the minister said.
The island’s financial situation with consequences of the mandatory Plans of Approach to finance and costs incurred due to the transition from Island Territory to country were explained to the CFT by the finance minister. These factors have to be combined with the upgrading of the neglected Central Government Departments, another financial consequence.
Thursday’s meeting was the first between the CFT and the Council of Ministers. CFT made a presentation about its financial supervisory role and that of the Finance Minister.
The execution of budget 2010 and the delivery of quarterly reports, the continued preparation of the 2011 budget were discussed during the meeting.
Shigemoto informed the CFT that annual accounts for 2010 will delivered to CFT on January 1, 2011
The Financial Management Improvement Project that government had embarked on several months ago should be back on track as per January 1, 2011.