PHILIPSBURG--Governor Eugene Holiday has issued a call on the community to dedicate their actions to the further building of the pillars of education, healthcare, employment and devotion to country, for a more just St. Maarten. He made the call during his address at the Governor’s Reception at the Captain Hodge Wharf of Friday, January 8.
Holiday said it is only through such united and purposeful action that St. Maarten can continue to bend its arc towards further progress and maintain St. Maarten as a beacon of hope and opportunity for generations to come.
The Governor said many persons have spent the end of the old year and start of 2016 reflecting on the events and experiences of 2015 that have influenced and shaped lives. “I have heard a variety of persons from a cross-section of our community express their reflections… While these reflections differ in elements and substance there seems to be a common thread that nationally experiences fell short of expectations.
“This expectations gap is in large part because experiences in the past year have been dominated by intense debates in regard to regulating integrity; impacted by serious concerns in regard to violent crime, including the shooting and loss of Police Officer Benjamin in the line of duty and overshadowed by intense political differences and constitutional questions.”
He said recognising this expectations gap is important, but even more important is what do we do with it going forward. “Will we use our expectations gap as a ground to complain and blame each other, or will we use it to take purposeful action to pursue our motto to always progress?
“I encourage you to, and trust that we will take purposeful action; that is action to bend the arc of our experiences towards our expectations for the further progress for our people. This is what we have always done and what we must continue to do in light of the challenges we face today. Challenges ranging from social-economic concerns – such as the quality of life of the elderly, the level of youth unemployment and the level of crime, to governance issues such as financial constraints, political discord and constitutional differences. These are all issues that, if left unchecked will threaten our nation’s continued progress,” he said.
Holiday said while St. Maarten has had its challenges the country is fortunate to live in comparatively peaceful and prosperous - a condition residents should not take for granted.
“I say this because too often there is a tendency by some not to recognise the progress we have achieved. I also say this because in highlighting our challenges and the urgency to address them, we sometimes fail to appreciate and celebrate the dedicated efforts and contributions of those – such as police officers, teachers, nurses and social workers – who day in and day out work on the frontline to make our nation’s progress possible. And, in the case of Officer Gamali Benjamin even giving his life for our progress; efforts and sacrifices, which should serve as the building blocks for purposeful action going forward.”
He continued: “Going forward, you and I are therefore obligated to be unrelenting and committed in promoting a more just society anchored on the real potential of an educated, healthy, employed and devoted-to-country population. The promotion of a more just society with improved opportunities and privileges based on the pillars of education, healthcare, employment, and devotion-to-country calls for us to re-examine and invest in the educational preparation of our people; calls for us to continue to invest in the quality and access to healthcare for all; calls for us to invest in improved employment and economic opportunities for our people, and calls for us to strengthen our and to instil in our youth the values of mutual respect and appreciation for our nation’s cause.”
