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Majority approves new water supply contract
by The Daily Herald
Posted: Jun 1, 2007 14:30 UTC
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PHILIPSBURG - After two postponements and two Central Committee meetings, the new 10-year contract with water production company Air-Fin was approved in Thursday’s continuation of the May 4 and 21 Island Council meetings with six votes in favour and three against.
The three National Alliance (NA) members Frans Richardson, George Pantophlet and Hyacinth Richardson voted against the proposed new contract. Richardson motivated his vote against, stating that without an impartial investigation of the Enerserve plant, he has no clear view on the fact and therefore he could not approve the contract.
Richardson pointed out that yesterday again, Public Works Commissioner Roy Marlin quoted from the inspection of the plant done by Air-Fin owner and managing director Willem Barendsen to give an impression on the state of maintenance of the Enerserve plant.
Richardson: “The commissioner said that he did visit the plant, but we did and what we saw was contradicting to the report made.”
Pantophlet also motivated his vote against, saying that he still believes it would have been a great chance for St. Maarten to own its own water plant. He had already made that statement when speaking in the second round of the meeting, adding that GEBE director William Brooks had asked in Friday’s Central Committee meeting about giving GEBE the plant to manage because it too could reduce the cost of producing water.
“The NA is disappointed in the fact that St. Maarten is going into a new constitutional status but the people are not given the opportunity to be master in our own country,” Pantophlet said.
Marlin stated that he would not react on Brooks’ March 26 letter to the Island Territory of St. Maarten in which he stated that GEBE wants and can operate the water plant. “Brooks’ letter is a passed station,” Marlin said.
He noted in addition that the opposition never refer to statements made in the media which are positive to what government is doing, but only when the statements are negative towards government. The Commissioner referred to former GEBE director Julius Lambert’s statement that government has been acting according to his concept made in 1995 to try to get the best price per water.
Based on Pantophlet’s question about a new agreement between the Island Government and GEBE on distribution of water, Marlin said that a new contract is being negotiated. A new contract is being drafted giving GEBE also more authority to do control on the production of water on behalf of government.
The Commissioner in addition agreed with Democratic Party (DP) Island Council member Maria Buncamper-Molanus that he should make more use of the Central Committee. Buncamper-Molanus made the remark that the Central Committee is there for the Executive Council to give all kinds of information to Island Council Members on a proposal.
Roy had presented the proposed water contract in a public meeting of the Island Council before going to the Central Committee first. Consequently, the Island Council meeting was adjourned so the Executive Council, advisors, Enerserve, Air-Fin and GEBE could give more detailed information to Island Council Members on the topic.
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