By Alex Rosaria
The screening of ministerial candidates confronts us with a simple yet profound question: “What kind of country do we want to be? And consequently: what kind of leaders do we want to have?”
Do we truly want people in power who have been involved in money-laundering, corruption, sexual offenses, and document fraud? And that’s not even touching on the competence of these candidates.
Still, political parties continue to nominate individuals who are clearly unfit for office – something we’ve seen happen far too often over the past 15 years.
It’s easy to point out that our screening law is stricter than the one in the Netherlands. Maybe it is. But honestly, what does that matter? The real question is whether this law is good for Curaçao.
And that’s a question we rarely hear addressed. Instead, many remain fixated on The Hague. Or more recently, they admire how President Bukele in San Salvador or President Traoré in Ouagadougou would handle things.
But let’s talk about what really matters: How high should we set the bar for integrity in ministerial candidates, if we want to become the kind of country we claim to aspire to be? Is integrity just about following laws and regulations, or is it also about norms, values, ethics, and decency?
And should screening be limited to the start of an appointment, or also be done periodically – and especially at the end – as I previously proposed as a Member of Parliament?
We can also choose to lower the bar so much that anyone can just walk into Fort Amsterdam and hold office. And clearly, the screening law shouldn’t only be considered “fair” when it applies to others – but “unjust” when it applies to us. We saw this contradiction during the uproar in the Rhuggenaath administration, when the Minister of Economic Affairs was forced to resign.
What kind of country do we want to be? Ibrahim Traoré, the military leader who seized power in Ouagadougou promising democracy – but now clings to his throne – cannot answer that question for us.
~ Alex David Rosaria (53) is a freelance consultant active in Asia and the Pacific. He is a former Member of Parliament, Minister of Economic Affairs, State Secretary of Finance and UN Implementation Officer in Africa and Central America. He is from Curaçao and has an MBA from University of Iowa (USA). ~
Dear Editor,
Will statistics show that of late there are more serious to fatal traffic accidents where motorcycles are involved? Will statistics and social media show that there are more reckless street fights between women than between men? Will statics show that increasingly there are quarrels, deals gone wrong, etc., in which the use of firearms is involved? I believe that statistics will bear out the above.
I also believe that people are not numb. I believe that people are waiting for a reason to feel. I believe that people are waiting for someone to remind them that kindness still exists and that kindness can change things.
What I know is that the majority of the people all over appreciate law and order I would love for it to be proven too that the paper is bought to read the good news.
Can we promote humility? Let’s try.
Russell A. Simmons
Barry Carlton Sample passed away on April 27, 2025, at his residence in Albany, New York. He was 74.
Barry leaves his beloved wife of 40 years, Jacqueline Lake-Sample, his dear daughter, Serwa Sample-Adams, and son-in-law, Corey Adams. He is survived by his sister, Jeanne Wilson; his nephews, Jason Wilson and Gary Wright; and a number of nieces, nephews, family, and friends throughout New York, Virginia, in the Caribbean islands of St. Martin, Curaçao, and Aruba, and in Europe.
Born in 1951, Barry “Chuck” Carlton Sample was a native of Long Island, New York. He came from humble beginnings on his family’s potato farm. During his early teens, he spent his summers working with Long Island fishermen, who initially thought he was too young for the demanding work – but soon learned that Barry was a hardy and determined youth.
However, more than the farm and the sea, it was music that stayed with Barry throughout his journey from a teenager into adulthood. From a young age, he took to singing and playing the guitar. He performed in bands in high school and during his college years in the late 1960s and 1970s. He continued his passion for music throughout his life. An avid lover of jazz, blues, rock ‘n’ roll, and, of course, Jimi Hendrix, he attended jazz and blues festivals and clubs in New York City and Montreal yearly.
Barry was an ardent lover of the arts and the theater, especially the plays of August Wilson. He closely followed the development of the annual St. Martin Book Fair and was a great friend and confidant of the indie press, House of Nehesi Publishers.
Barry was an alumnus of the State University of New York at Albany, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree, graduating magna cum laude in 1973, followed by a Master’s degree from the university’s School of Criminal Justice in 1977. From 1978 to 1982, he served as a lecturer in African American history, social science, and public policy at SUNY Albany.
His commitment to education and public service laid the foundation for an active career in public administration and political advisory roles – positions for which he became widely respected in Albany, New York City, and Washington, D.C., both in community and political circles.
While he did enter the corporate sector – serving as President of Instructional Systems Incorporated in New Jersey from 2013 until his passing – Barry Sample held several prominent public positions between 1993 and 2013. These included Chair of New York Gaming Commission; Deputy Director of State Operations for the New York State Executive Chamber; Chief of Staff at New York State Office of the State Comptroller; Director of Intergovernmental Affairs and Community Relations of New York State Comptroller’s Office; and Deputy Budget Director at the New York State Division of the Budget.
Barry Sample’s public service career began at the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, where he held several roles between 1981 and 1993. These included Deputy Director of Criminal Justice; Executive Deputy Commissioner; Chief of the Bureau of Program Development and Planning; and Senior Criminal Justice Program Analyst.
In 1985, he married his devoted wife, Jacqueline Lake, marking the beginning of a lifelong partnership alongside his distinguished public service.
Barry counted among his friends, colleagues, and associates several prominent figures from his public and private careers. However, he remained a private, serious, and deeply caring man who held his family closest to his heart, with his beloved Jacqueline as its heartbeat. He offered a rare glimpse into this deeply personal side in 2012, at the funeral of his 26-year-old son, Bakari “Baki” Masso Lake-Sample, when he quietly said to the congregation, “Baki was my best friend.”
To several of Barry’s closest family and friends, he will be remembered not just with admiration, but as their dearest confidant. As his brother-in-law, author Lasana M. Sekou recalled: “Barry was my wise counselor.”
The funeral service for Barry Carlton Sample will be held at New Comer Cremations and Funerals, 181 Troy-Schenectady Road, Watervliet, New York 12189, on Saturday, May 3, 2025. The calling hour will begin at 10:00am, followed by the funeral service at 11:00am. Interment will take place at Graceland Cemetery, 680 Delaware Avenue, Albany, NY 12209.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Barry Sample’s memory to the Bakari Lake-Sample Scholarship at Macedonia Baptist Church, 26 Wilson Avenue, Albany, NY 12205. To leave a message of condolence for the family and for directions to the funeral live stream, please visit
www.newcomeralbany.com/obituaries.
Farewell, Barry.
House of Nehesi Publishers
Dear Prime Minister Mercelina,
We have read your recent and passionate condemnation of the deeply offensive and racist remarks made by Dutch MP Thierry Baudet. We commend your courage in speaking out so clearly against colonial rhetoric, demographic engineering, and the degrading idea that the Caribbean is still up for “repopulation” or exploitation.
What you now condemn as a “colonial fantasy” for St. Maarten has been the lived, painful reality for Bonaire since 2010. Baudet’s statements are not a new threat – they are simply a blunt expression of a policy direction that has already been silently executed in Bonaire, with devastating consequences.
Since the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles and the forced annexation of Bonaire as a “territorial public entity” of the Netherlands, we have endured:
A 400% rise in immigration, with Dutch Europeans granted voting rights in local election and referendum after 90 days after arrival.
The displacement of the native Bonairean population, reduced from approximately 80% in 2010 to less than 30% today.
Loss of land, economic access, political voicelessness and cultural identity, as Dutch law overrides local governance. A process that amounts to ethnic and cultural erasure, framed as modernization.
While the world hears your strong words against recolonization, we have been living the outcomes of it for over a decade – not as speculation, but as everyday reality.
In 2015, the people of Bonaire overwhelmingly rejected this imposed status in a democratic referendum. Yet that clear voice of self-determination was ignored. Our democratic will was dismissed. Instead of being treated as partners in the Kingdom, we were expelled from the Kingdom Charter aka “Statuut” framework, left with no protection or recognition under its legal or political structure.
Shockingly, this exclusion from the “Statuut” was agreed upon not only by the Netherlands, but with the cooperation or acquiescence – or silence – of our Caribbean partners: St. Maarten, Curaçao, and Aruba. While they continue to operate as autonomous countries under the Charter, Bonaire was effectively cast out of the “Statuut” and subjected to the full force of unilateral Dutch rule. Silence becomes complicity?
Prime Minister Mercelina, we must also address what many across the Caribbean witnessed with concern: your role last October as Chair of a United Nations session during the “Pact of the Future” summit. We, with UN ECOSOC Consultative Status, witnessed firsthand how your presence was used to project an image of Caribbean inclusion and harmony in the Kingdom – yet while you chaired that meeting, Bonaire and its people were being systematically erased – its people displaced, its democratic will denied, under policies that mirror Baudet’s ideology in practice, if not in language.
This creates confusion and even false legitimacy in the eyes of UN Member states, experts and the international community. When a Caribbean Prime Minister appears to endorse the image of a harmonious Kingdom, while sister islands are being recolonized and depopulated, the result is misrepresentation of the truth and undermines our struggle.
We urge you to extend your voice to those already suffering under the very policies Baudet now dares to say aloud. Acknowledge the human rights crisis in Bonaire, and use your position to speak the full truth – for all Caribbean peoples in the Kingdom.
Sincerely, with respect and hope, as a native Bonerian who has survived three assassination attempts and unlawful imprisonment, I call on St. Maarten, Curaçao, and Aruba to unite with us in the name of justice.
James Finies,
Bonaire Human Rights Organization
Dear Editor,
The National Alliance extends heartfelt congratulations to Ms. Silveria Jacobs on her appointment as the Executive Director of Charlotte Brookson Academy for the Performing Arts (CBA).
Ms. Jacobs has long been a pillar of leadership and dedication in St. Maarten, having served as Leader of the National Alliance; Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport; and Prime Minister of St. Maarten. Her passion for education, culture, and the arts has been evident throughout her career, leaving a positive and lasting impact on the nation and its people.
The National Alliance recognizes that Ms. Jacobs’ commitment to uplifting youth and promoting creativity makes her exceptionally well-suited to lead CBA. Under her guidance, the academy is poised to continue its growth as a beacon for performing arts education in St. Maarten.
Her vision aligns perfectly with fostering innovation, supporting the Orange Economy, and empowering the next generation of artists and leaders. The faculty, students, and wider community of CBA can look forward to a bright future with Ms. Jacobs at the helm.
The National Alliance is proud to see one of its own take on this important role and offers full support as Ms. Jacobs embarks on this new chapter of service to the community.
National Alliance
