PHILIPSBURG--The Harbour has not yet responded to the inquiries from the Prosecutors Office regarding its policies and that of its closely linked companies.
Prosecutor Karola van Nie told The Daily Herald on Thursday that the office had not yet received a response from the harbour.
In a letter dated July 13, the Prosecutor’s Office requested information regarding the policies and “course of affairs” from the St. Maarten Harbour Holding NV and from its closely linked companies.
The investigation is part of civil proceedings being done by the Prosecutor’s Office looking into the affairs of the St. Maarten Ports Authority. The investigation covers a range of areas including the construction of the Simpson Bay Causeway, which was financed by the harbour.
The inquiry concerns the “corporate governance” of the Port Authority and addresses issues such as its compliance with the law, compliance with the statutes, transparency and some specific issues, including the course of affairs as it relates to the construction of the Simpson Bay Causeway bridge.
The Prosecutor’s Office had said that the proceedings were prompted by claims from the community including the Integrity Inquiry report into the functioning of government that was conducted by PriceWaterhouseCoopers (US) in 2014 and the final report “Doing the right things right,” that was produced, also in 2014, by de Commissie Integer Openbaar Bestuur.
The investigation is a civil proceeding and not a criminal investigation. Van Nie said due to public interest and based on the Civil Code of St. Maarten, the Prosecutor’s Office is authorised to submit a request to the Common Court of Justice of Aruba, Curaçao, St. Maarten and Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba to investigate the policies and course of affairs of any legal entity in St. Maarten. Such an inquiry may extend to the policies and course of affairs of other, closely linked legal entities, she noted.
Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications Claret Connor had said that he hoped that the harbour “fully cooperates” with the inquiry.
