St. Martin News Network - St. Maarten

SCELL Celebrates first anniversary.

scellanniversary05082016 PHILIPSBURG:--- The University of St. Martin’s School of Continuing Education & Life Long Learning celebrated its first Anniversary on August 1, 2016. SCELL opened its door a year ago and celebrated the launch of this new and innovative Business Arm of USM with a quaint but sophisticated celebration in the elegantly lite courtyard. Dignitaries, press, USM’s staff and faculty, leaders from the University of the Virgin Islands, politicians, the honorary Board members of USM, the most respected Managing Directors and Human Resources mangers on the island, local organizations large and small and members of the community lined the seats under the big tent and embraced the idea. The idea, that St. Maarten finally had a training and development organization that understood their needs, their culture and was equipped to develop effective training programs to meet the needs of their valued work teams at all levels on their motherland.
The birth of SCELL has rocked St. Maarten and hasn’t stopped since August 1st of 2015. To date they have over 100 plus customized trainings to offer, established relationships with the biggest organizations on the island, founded two organizations, Women’s Island Network, (WIN) & Young Professionals Network (YPN) both sharing the same vision to raise funds to encourage women and men ages 18-45 to pursue higher learning degrees at USM. That is not all; both of the organizations unison will be award 12 scholarships to students this Fall. The six male scholarships and six female scholarships will be awarded to students who will be pursuing a Hospitality degree in USM’s accredited and successful BTEC program.
SCELL has officially pronounced the month of September as the Caribbean’s, Get Ready for the High Season month. The foundation of the conference is to support the economic sustainability of St. Maarten by hosting a conference that is encouraging other islands to register and attend and join the festivities. This conference has catapulted SCELL as an automatic leader, the training mecca throughout the Caribbean. SCELL will offer 40 plus trainings throughout the month of September ranging from Public Speaking, Accounting Basics, Supervisory Boot Camp, Customer Service Boot Camp, Microsoft Excel 101, Management & Leadership Boot Camp, Writing Skills for Professionals, Sales & Marketing techniques, Email Etiquette and two opportunities to earn certifications from the American Hotel and Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI). AHLEI is the global leader in hospitality training and hotel management certifications in the world. The Certified Guest Services Professional training will be facilitated by Erwin Wolthuis, USM’s BTEC Hospitality Division Head and Certified Hospitality Educator and Dr. Gittens, a Master Certified Hospitality Educator one of only 13 in the world, appointed by AHLEI will facilitate the Certified Hospitality Educator (CHE) 4 day training offered in St. Maarten for the first time in history by USM. The conference kicks off on September 9 and runs through September 30 and will be held simultaneously at Divi Little Bay Resort and The University of St. Martin.
For more information on the Get Ready for High Season Conference visit the SCELL website at @ http://scell.usmonline.onl/index.php/highseason or call SCELL today at 543-3710 or 554-2437 or email us @ This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

USP welcomes Maria who will focus on economy, jobs.

buncampermolanusfrans050820 “Can’t devalue her knowledge, experience” - Frans

PHILIPSBURG:---The United St. Maarten Party (USP) on Friday announced that former Commissioner and Minister Maria Buncamper-Molanus will be contesting the September 26 Parliamentary Election as a candidate on the USP slate. Party leader and Member of Parliament Frans Richardson said he is extremely pleased that Buncamper-Molanus has agreed to join the USP family as he knows she still has “so much to offer to St. Maarten.”

MP Richardson has stated on numerous occasions that the USP has no issue in giving persons who have served St. Maarten the opportunity to do so again despite personal setbacks. “Maria is a former Senator of the Netherlands Antilles, a former Commissioner, and a former Minister. That kind of knowledge should not be underestimated or undervalued. Her body of work speaks for itself.

“I will not stand as judge, jury, and executioner over anyone who is dealing with issues in their personal lives. We know her capabilities and value her presence as part of the team. There were over 200 people who believed in Maria last election. Her ideas were fresh and forward-looking and she will bring this to the party as well,” Richardson said.

Buncamper-Molanus said truly she wasn’t planning a run in 2016. However, the fact that the board, advisors, and leadership of the USP are on one line to put people first, appealed to her. “It is fair to say that once you've been bitten by the political bug, politics is in your blood. It is therefore not strange that I continue to follow the political developments on St. Maarten even after the last election and missing the seat in Parliament by one vote. This considering having been out of office for four years,” she said.

“In an effort to avoid a cliché I will suffice by saying that I am getting back in the race because I still have a lot of energy and believe that the knowledge and experience I have can still be put to good use in Government, in particular in the Parliament of St. Maarten.”

“There are so many ways a person can contribute to the community as I have done for example for years through volunteering with non-profit organizations and so running again on a political list was not necessarily what I was looking for, but the USP for some time now has expressed appreciation and recognition for my contributions in public office. My opinion is valued, perhaps because it is a young party, perhaps because they have insight and foresight, however, whatever it is it appealed to me. We have discussed the issues and have found common ground and I feel comfortable and excited going into the September 26th election with USP focusing on the issues that matter to the people of St. Maarten,” she said.

She continued: “There are those who are very good at articulating, being loud and putting on an attractive performance, but at the end of the day this is not necessarily based on genuine concern nor does it lead to any genuine results for our community. Much is said about leadership and certainly while every political leader has positive attributes which contribute to obtaining the necessary support to get elected, many fall short on carrying that genuine concern with them into the Parliament once elected, but this is not so for Frans Richardson and this is what speaks to me when it comes to the leader of the USP.”

As for St. Maarten and her contributions moving forward, Buncamper-Molanus said accomplishments can be listed every term, but the true measure of any effort is determined by how well the people are doing. “How high the quality of life is for people in the tough situations. We can evaluate ourselves as representatives by how well the people are able to take care of their needs. At the core of all of this, is the economy and jobs. At the center of this evaluation is whether or not the people on the lowest level of the economic ladder are able to live on the wage they earn from a 40-hour work week,” she said, tying into something Richardson said his party will be championing; a living wage.

“We can only judge our educational system if those who have gone through it, in fact, are able to use their knowledge to improve their lives. We must address a few basic issues such as better participation in the economy by our people (better and better-paying jobs), better-educated labour force as a result of the available education, which then leads to better paying legitimate jobs for our people, then we will have something real to measure. Overhauling our Tax System so that the people have more buying power. I call this process "together legit". No one can do this on his or her own. We need the people to empower themselves, vote the right representatives/candidates into office, who will put the people first and ensure that the people get the best St. Maarten has to offer.”

Buncamper Molanus expressed her gratitude to MP Richardson and to the USP party for giving me the opportunity to join the party on its journey. "Thank you for valuing my experience and my ability to effect positive change. I look forward to working with this group of driven patriots and in particular sharing my experience with the new candidates. It can be safely said that public service is for me a lifelong service and God knows this job never ends.”

MP Marlin-Romeo: Calls on Minister of Justice to ensure no political interference in judicial entities.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Member of Parliament (MP) Leona Marlin-Romeo cautions the Minister of Justice on the ‘trias politica’, and reminds the honorable minister that he must ensure that the powers of one branch do not conflict with the other.

Over the past few weeks, the Ministry of Justice has been justly and actively unveiling the plans of the ministry. Plans and projects that have been in the queue to be executed, though commendable, it is important for the Minister of Justice to exercise the separation of powers and not let the good efforts be tainted with politics.

Law enforcement/Justice and politics should never be intertwined, mingled with or even wear a political color. There is no place for it in the justice system, as each citizen have the right to have confidence in law enforcement knowing that it should be impartial and fair.
Once that stigma of politics is placed or the affiliation with a political party then that confidence is broken and Lady Justice no longer wears that role of applying equal justice to all.

At the same token, Members of Parliament should also remember their role and allow ministries to function as they should.

As a parliamentarian our responsibility lies solely within the realms of Parliament, crossing those responsibilities often blur lines and in fact, goes against the checks and balances that were instilled in our constitution stated Member of Parliament Leona Marlin-Romeo.

Frans: USP honors memory of Gamali by keeping promises to Justice Ministry.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Leader of the United St. Maarten Party (USP) Member of Parliament Frans Richardson on Friday said the party and its membership is proud of the fact that it honored the memory of Officer Gamali Benjamin by ensuring that his brothers and sisters in blue of the Police Department have received some of the tools they need to stay safe and fight crime. Officer Benjamin sacrificed his life in August of 2015 while responding to a robbery call of a jewelry store on Frontstreet. He was shot on that day, August 5, 2015 and died three days later on August 8.

“The entire island and elsewhere was thrown into a state of shock when Officer Benjamin was so brutally gunned down. In reflecting on that tragic day and remembering Officer Benjamin, we figured the best way to honor his memory is to keep our promise to his colleagues that we will do all we can to make sure they get the tools they need,” MP Richardson said. “Are we 100% there yet? No, but we have put forward a genuine and sincere effort to take care of the civil servants that fall under the Justice Ministry and that will continue,” he added.

When it assumed responsibility over justice in the current governing coalition in early 2016, the USP instructed appointed Minister Edson Kirindongo to “take care of the people first and foremost”. This directive has resulted in over 140 national decrees signed for police, immigration, customs, national detectives and coast guard, the forensic lab and shooting range building was signed, bought and executed, the camera system was finally realized, the insurance coverage for Ministry of Justice personnel, the establishment of the K-9 brigade ect.

“Officer Benjamin was a decent soul, a good Police officer and a solid member of this community. All of us felt a sense of loss, many still feel that today. He is never far from our thoughts as was expressed during the launching of the camera system and forensic building. To his family, on behalf of the USP, please take comfort in knowing that he will never be forgotten, cherished forever. The USP honors all law enforcement officers who put their own safety at risk to ensure the safety of our community. We urge everyone to take a moment to reflect on the sacrifices that have been made,” Richardson said.

Private Aircraft crash land at PJIAE due to landing gear failure. (UPDATED)

planecrashland05082016 Simpson Bay:--- A private aircraft crash landed at the Princess Juliana International Airport around 2pm on Friday. SMN News learned that the landing gear of the aircraft failed.
SMN News learn that the aircraft is a small cargo plane, and no one was hurt. According to a well-placed source, the front landing gear on the aircraft broke off. SMN News learnt the aircraft is currently on the landing strip at amerjet08052016 PJIAE which is blocking all inbound and outbound flights. Workers at PJIAE removed the aircraft from the landing strip in order to restore full services.