Dear Editor,

I, Julian Rollocks Jr, noticed with great concern that on November 9, 2023, it was reported in the media that GEBE intends to give its clients their outstanding bills in bulk with a distinct possibility of clients getting 20 outstanding bills simultaneously. GEBE also announced that clients would only have a 30 day grace period to settle their outstanding bills. I, Julian Rollocks Jr., would like to pose the following questions to the Board and Management of GEBE.

Firstly, with the Christmas season steadily approaching and the difficult economic times that the public is facing, where are they supposed to find money to make bulk payments of outstanding bills? Has GEBE considered a payment plan, and if so, is GEBE willing to accept, for example, NAf. 50 a month on $2,000.00 worth of outstanding bills? Has GEBE considered the plight of our pensioners and people with varying illnesses when they have to contend with these bulk payments?

I am calling on Prime Minister Jacobs and the Council of Ministers to step in and resolve GEBE’s bulk payment proposal, because 80% of the general public do not have comparable salaries to the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers to make bulk payments.

In August of 2022, I proposed via a press release that GEBE introduce a prepaid electricity service to the general public of St. Maarten due to the ongoing issues that GEBE has had with its billing system. I indicated that prepay meters are a “pay as you go” (PAYG) system that would offer GEBE customers the luxury of not having to worry about monthly bills. If for some reason, you are struggling to pay GEBE’s bills, prepayment meters can be used to repay a set amount over a period of time that is suitable to the customer.

I also stated that the implementation of a prepaid system would allow our citizens to control how much they are willing to spend on energy usage rather than getting unexpected bills on a monthly basis, while also cutting administrative costs of GEBE.

On the 24^th of October, Prime Minister Jacobs and the director of NRPB had a meeting where it was stated that the NRPB would be assisting GEBE. When does the NRPB intend to assist GEBE and in what capacity does the NRPB intend to do so?

GEBE’s decision to implement bulk payments is not in the general interest of the public of St. Maarten and I am calling on the Prime Minister, Council of Ministers, and Parliament, to resolve the bulk payment proposal as soon as possible because it will be detrimental to the people of St. Maarten.

Julian Rollocks Jr.

Dear Editor,

In The Daily Herald of Monday, November 6, 2023, in the article regarding the annual Courtney Gibson Spelling Bee, on page 3, I believe, I should make the following observation.

In the second paragraph third line, I read “Fitzpatrick snagged the first place after correctly spelling a Guyanese word, etc.”

If I am not mistaken the young man Fitzpatrick is of Guyanese descent/heritage, the other contestant is of Indian descent/heritage, I think.

The finalists were presented with new words that were not previously given to the spellers. The young Fitzpatrick won after correctly spelling the Guyanese word in the final round.

This doesn’t sound right to me and in my opinion, furthermore opens up possibilities of more controversy in future.

If the word is described as a “Guyanese word”, my assumption is that the word is a creole word. Since it may have been a word specific to one culture or heritage background, I do not think it should be in a Spelling Bee. To be more specific, a word specifically tied to a specific culture or heritage should not be in this Spelling Bee that is open to all children on St. Maarten.

I appreciate the effort put forward by the committee to have this annual Spelling Bee, but I have to voice my disagreement and disappointment with the outcome of the Spelling Bee Contest.

Oldine Bryson Pantophlet

Dear Editor,

I am writing to express my deep concern regarding a recent development with our local telecommunications company, TelEm Group of Companies. In recent times, the company has unilaterally increased the monetary conversion rate they apply to their services from 1.78 to 1.82. This decision has raised significant issues for many of the company's customers, including myself.

The concern arises from the fact that the Central Bank of Curaçao and St. Maarten has officially set the conversion rate at 1.79. This official rate serves as the benchmark for financial transactions in our region and is meant to ensure a fair and consistent approach to currency conversion. The telecommunications company's decision to use a rate of 1.82 is not only inconsistent with the official rate but also has financial implications for their customers.

This discrepancy in conversion rates can have a direct impact on customers’ bills and expenses, causing financial inconvenience and uncertainty. It is essential for service providers to adhere to official rates and regulations to maintain transparency and fairness for their customers.

I urge the TelEm Group of Companies to reevaluate their conversion rate and align it with the officially established rate. This would ensure that customers are not unfairly burdened with the additional cost incurred due to the discrepancy.

I also call upon the regulatory authorities to monitor and enforce adherence to the officially established conversion rate to protect the interests of consumers and maintain financial integrity within our community.

In a time when economic stability is paramount, it is crucial that service providers act ethically and responsibly. I hope that our local telecommunications company will address this issue promptly and make the necessary adjustments to ensure that their customers are treated fairly.

Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I hope that by bringing this issue to light, we can work together to resolve it for the benefit of our community.

Sincerely,

Cedric R. Peterson

Dear Editor,

By now I believe that your readers are aware that even though “I love my mother to death”, my father was very instrumental in forming me so that I have become the man I am today. “Look me in the eye when speaking to me.” “Never lie, only cowards lie.” “Respect your mother, your sisters and respect women on the whole.” “Avoid being biased.” “If you are speaking about others, avoid hearsay.” “Don’t mix up he and she.” And I can go on and on with the advice he gave me. Because he was a seaman and was not at home everyday, he gave me a copybook and a pencil and told me to write down what I thought was important in that copybook. so that we could discuss it another day.

In several letters I have stated to you that because of the job I did, I accepted to be fair game. So would it also be if anyone responded to my writing in a mature responsible way.

I do not speak with water in my mouth and am therefore careful not to intentionally offend anyone. I do not oblige anyone to do so, but if the shoe fits anyone that person should wear it. I have been following the saga between the police and the present honorable minister of justice and wanted to know the real reason behind this back and forth.

Because I firmly believe that you should not bite the hand that feeds you, and because I know that it is not realistic for the police to strike against their minister of justice, I used a sprat to catch the whale. It took some patience, but I believe that gradually my suspicions are being confirmed. I always wanted to know why was it necessary for the members of the NAPB to chose a lawyer, when they themselves could form a delegation to have meetings with the minister of justice to discuss their grievances and also have suggestions how to to cope with the changes that life on St. Maarten brings along.

Then on the front page of the paper of the Tuesday, November 7, edition, there was an article about the NAPB. During a live broadcast on Lady Grace’s talk show, members of the NAPB openly and categorically distanced themselves from that article by the lawyer of the NAPB, Cor Merx, which by the way was the only sane thing I heard coming from the police in that interview. Must I assume that the police are telling the public that frisk-and-search is something strange to them? What do they do when family members bring clothes or other belongings to the station for the detainees?

But in putting two and two together, I got a strange but understandable four. Is the former prosecutor, who is of that nation whose motto is “I will get you one day”, using the NAPB to get back at those who fired him?

I worked for 41 years as a police officer and one of the things that my father made sure he did was to consistently call me and ask me to take time out to ask myself who I really was, He always reminded me that if I was enjoying the job I was doing, then I did not have to work. Once I answered him that he should be here for Carnival. He would say to me, “I know that you are not afraid, but make sure do not be naive.”

In those 41 years I have learnt that the minister of justice and the police brass usually consult with each other before going outside. It is not today that there is a problem with personnel shortage at the prison. I do not have any inside information concerning that and I also know that some things are easier said than done, but logic would tell me that because of the shortage in both police and prison personnel, a decision should have been made to recruit 10 to 15 people, specifically to deal with the detainees at the police stations.

I do not know what is what, but what I know is that a solution has to be found because the community of St. Maarten is not being served. I hope that they are not at loggerheads. I still prefer honey to vinegar when it comes to catching flies.

Russell A. Simmons