PHILIPSBURG--While the leaders of the three political parties of the "Red, White and Blue Coalition" have been tight-lipped about the proposed candidates for ministers, a slate of names has been making the rounds in the community in the past days. Topping that list is National Alliance (NA) leader William Marlin as prime minister, which has been anticipated since the parties divided the portfolios of the ministers on August 31.
Marlin, whose party won four seats in the August 29 Parliamentary Elections, joined forces with the two seats of United St. Maarten Party (US Party) of fellow Member of Parliament Frans Richardson and the Democratic Party (DP) of outgoing Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams (also two seats) hours after the elections results were announced before dawn on August 30.
The speculated Marlin Cabinet has MP-Elect/former Minister Silveria Jacobs (NA) set to take up the post of Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports again, and former President of Parliament Rodolphe Samuel (NA) as Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI.
Marlin and Jacobs are MPs-elect. If indeed they become ministers, their vacant seats will go to outgoing MP Hyacinth Richardson and former minister Romeo Pantophlet.
Samuel was next in line for one of the seats vacated by Marlin and Jacobs, but as he is tipped to become a minister the seat will go to the next highest vote-getter on his party's slate, Hyacinth Richardson.
The Minister Plenipotentiary in The Hague is said to be former Deputy Minister Plenipotentiary Henrietta Doran-York. It is also possible that current Minister Plenipotentiary Mathias Voges will continue in The Hague, but in the deputy's post.
US Party leader MP Frans Richardson is said to be taking up the post of Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications (TEATT). As an MP-elect, he will have to vacate his seat in Parliament, which will make way for environmentalist Rueben Thompson to join fellow US Party MP-elect Leona Marlin-Romeo. Marlin-Romeo is tipped to become first vice-president of Parliament, a post allocated to her party.
Current Public Health Minister Cornelius de Weever (DP) is to continue in his post, according to people close to the issue. He is expected to be joined in the Council of Ministers by attorney-at-law Jeroen Veen as justice minister.
DP was allocated the deputy prime minister's post in the division of portfolios, but it is not clear whether De Weever or Veen will hold the post. Usually, the justice minister substitutes for the prime minister, but the coalition partner can decide to appoint a different minister as a substitute for the prime minister. In the Wescot-Williams I and II Cabinets the VROMI minister was the deputy prime minister. In the current Wescot-Williams III Cabinet, the justice minister is the deputy prime minister.
With De Weever said to have opted to stay a minister, his Parliament seat will go to former St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association (SHTA) President Emil Lee. Lee will join Wescot-Williams, who is expected to become president of Parliament, in the legislature.
The post of finance minister will remain with current Minister Martin Hassink. He and Veen are the two professional ministers in the Marlin Cabinet, meaning that they were not candidates on any party's slate.
Should all the candidate ministers pass their judicial screening and those who were elected MPs give up their seats, the composition of Parliament will see changes with re-elected MP George Pantophlet and MP-elect Christophe Emmanuel being joined in the NA benches by Richardson and Romeo.
Wescot-Williams and Lee will be the DP parliamentarians. Marlin-Romeo and Thompson will be MPs for US Party.
The only party in opposition, with seven seats, is the United People's (UP) party of MP Theo Heyliger. He will be joined in Parliament by UP MPs-elect former minister Franklin Meyers, businessman Silvio Matser, incumbent minister Maurice Lake, businesswoman Tamara Leonard, and incumbent MPs Dr. Lloyd Richardson and Johan "Janchi" Leonard.
