Says Legislative bodies of North and South should meet to discuss issues of mutual concern
On behalf of the UP parliamentary faction, we would like to congratulate the new President of the Collectivity of St. Martin Aline Hanson. Hanson is the first female President of the Collectivite.
Even though Hanson is taking over the reins of government under very difficult circumstances for the Northern side of the island, I’m convinced that Hanson will get the support she needs to govern on behalf of the people of St. Martin.
I sent a letter to the President of Parliament asking for a meeting to be organized since the first meeting I called to be organized as former President of Parliament in 2011 regrettably did not materialize.
I hope current President of Parliament Samuel will contact the representatives of the North side and extend an invitation to our colleagues from the North for a meeting. This is a non-political subject that requires attention and I do hope that the legislative bodies could meet in May or June prior to Parliament going on recess.
Sint Maarten’s Parliament has a structural relationship with its counterparts within the Kingdom of the Netherlands under the umbrella of the Inter-parliamentary Kingdom Relations Committee (IPKO) as well as through membership of the Parliament of Latin America and the Caribbean (Parlatino).
There are several issues which are of importance for both legislative bodies to understand and discuss including issues of safety and security, campaign financing, and European Union funding just to mention a few.
A working relationship has already been established between the Executive branch and civil servants, and the time is now ripe for the legislative bodies to get together. It’s time to meet our neighbours in an official setting as we move into the third year of Country Sint Maarten.
Drs. Gracita R. Arrindell
Member of Parliament
United People’s (UP) Party
Sunday, April 21, 2013