Dear Editor,

  A giant among us, Mr. Guido R. Hermans, recently passed away.

  Perhaps not as well known, as humble as he always was, a media-shy person. Many legislative products, before and after 10-10-10, are in his name.

  Just having returned from the Netherlands (1993), I got a job as a legislative lawyer at the General and Legal Affairs Department (AJZ) of the Island Territory of Curaçao.

My first lesson from Mr. Hermans, as my mentor: “Young man, this is a package of draft legislative proposals. Get started, mucha hòmber, I’ll help you if you get stuck. Then we will start the real process, which is ‘delete and omit’!”

  Of course, I didn’t understand any of this at first, until I discovered the genius of this methodology of this legislative guru, Mr. Hermans. Before that, I had to toil every day into the evenings to process his lessons, but learning – that quickly happened.

  Mr. Hermans was also in favor of partial legislative changes.

  “Maitre Ribeiroo, our government apparatus is not as well equipped as in the Netherlands. So, we have to do it modestly through partial legislative changes. We will then arrange it for applicable texts (geldende teksten),” said this grandmaster.

  Each sentence was then meticulously analyzed by him for possible linguistic errors as well as for the logical reasoning of the whole. Many pieces of my text used to have his remarks: “Amice, is it necessary?” and “behold, there is already the answer in that question.”

  My early days with Mr. Hermans would not have been the easiest – long sessions – if it weren’t for the fact that he always combined them with anecdotes about international politics, French statements and, how could it be otherwise, in Latin.

  One of them: “Maitre Ribeiroo, do not forget this: ‘Gutta cavat lapidem non vi sed saepe cadendo’ (The drop hollows out the stone, not by force, but by falling often).”

  If I didn’t fully understand a certain word or concept right away, he always referred me to its deeper meaning: “Omnes definitio – in jure – periculosa es.” (Every definition – in law – is dangerous).

  In my own life and career I may not have followed all his teachings, but I can never forget who my true teacher was. 

  To the Hermans family: wishing you strength! To Mr. Hermans: Amice, see you later!

Norberto V. Ribeiro

Dear Editor,

  Small countries with narrow economic options require their governance to focus more closely on their economic future path than larger more diversified ones because the risk is so much greater. If your economy includes extractive industries, manufacturing, agriculture and financial services, the decline in one of these is less disastrous than when the activity types are fewer. In St. Maarten we have to depend on stayover tourism, cruise tourism and some smaller activities, most closely tied to each other.

  Ideally, we and our decision-makers should have a clear vision of what activities in the limited range of options will be optimal for the entire country and population and be consumed with the challenge of making the most of these limited options, many of which are in highly competitive fields. We should have clear understanding of whether industries like gambling, cruise ship visits, yachting, foreign residence construction have value to the country in respect of employment, positive income for the public sector and a longer-term future where that question is appropriate.

  We boast extensive and expensive advice-providing services and have in the past hired outside advisers to assist as well. Incredibly, after all that has been written and monies spent there is little evidence of attention being paid to these areas in the political conversation that we hear reported in the press. The focus instead is on how declining tax revenues are spent and the obligations of the “colonial” power that is currently supporting the deficits being created.

  That unanimity of vision and purpose that would build business confidence is undermined by divisions relating to the representation of the private and public sectors. The contributions of the private sector organizations to economic thinking are consistently interpreted as being for self-serving individual benefit of the private sector individuals and discounted for that reason. This is exacerbated by the fact that many private sector operators are of a non-St. Maarten heritage. This is further exacerbated by divisions within the private sector based on heritage.

  In the near future St. Maarten is going to be confronted with having to make decisions on how the public finances are going to be put in order. There is no indication that there are plans in place that would return the country to a solid public finance footing. Unprecedented tough decisions lie ahead. Tax models are going to be a key determinant as to whether a positive trend can be created from the current structures that were created by short-term convenience and a reluctance to invest in tax collection.

  This painful process would fare better if representations of the private sector and the public sector were to treat each other with greater respect and understanding and not with the suspicion that every private sector input is based exclusively on narrow interests. The success and continued viability of many private sector operators in St. Maarten is closely tied to good governance and good governance that is tied to a successful negotiation of the public sector revenue challenges.

Robbie Ferron

Dear Editor,

  The words “customer” and “service” when placed together form “a unicorn” on our “Friendly island”. This has also caused us to accept that proper customer service should not be expected or demanded. We cower and nothing changes.

  My experience outside of CIBC Bank at Emmaplein with a “senior interior” security guard on Monday was one of utter disrespect and was beyond bad customer service. What is worse is his behaviour and treatment of customers (read: bank clients whose money also pays his salary) are well known within the walls of the bank and among regular clients. People actually go to the bank prepared to be confronted by this unprofessional man.

  We are living in tough economic times and before anyone decides I am affecting anyone’s means of income, quit the thought. This is about personal financial business being exposed to the public, someone who is rude and unprofessional, and about an institution doing nothing about it because clients have no choice but to visit the bank where their money is.

  So, what happened:

  I received an email to visit a customer service rep about going into the bank to complete a service. I was given the name of the representative and the bank’s opening times.

  I arrived at the bank and told the security guard I have an appointment with customer service. He was already gruff and behaved as though I was bothering his day and how dare I think I could speak to him (this is my impression). He goes inside and comes back out in an even worse mood than before. He “communicates” (if you can call his tone of communication) that the rep I said I had an appointment with said he had no appointment with anyone.

  The guard proceeded to ask me why I needed to go to customer service. I mean, am I to tell the security guard what my business in the bank is? I am also to tell the security guard what my business at the bank is with zero privacy standing outside the bank’s door in front of everyone else waiting there?

  I received quite a dressing down after he saw the email I received about coming into the bank. When I said I had an email, he was next looking into my phone and reading it off my phone – zero privacy. “That is not an appointment,” he said in a rude and unfriendly tone. How am I to know what the heck it is called when the bank informs me I have to show up to complete a service that the bank offers? A service I am paying for btw.

  I was prepared to let this incident go, but couldn’t upon learning that the nasty behaviour of this security guard is a constant and well known factor.

  1. One woman waiting to get into the bank remarked: “He is the reason I don’t like coming to the bank.”

  2. The customer service representative after hearing my complaint about the way I was treated asked, “Which security guard?” When I indicated who it was, the rep’s response was that this behaviour is known and other clients have also complained.

  3. Another rep hearing the issue indicated the same as rep 1 that the behaviour is known and added that his behaviour is known to management, et al.

  This is not a “me” issue. This is a chronic issue at a bank I do business with and it needs to be fixed asap. Either this security guard is sent to customer service classes and monitored after for change of behaviour or removed from dealing with the public.

  CIBC Bank, your customers are not a bother. They should not be treated with disrespect, rudely or in any unkind manner. They should not come to your branches expecting to be treated like the scum of the earth, to be dressed down, or to be “put in their place” by anyone.

  I don’t want an apology. Those are fickle and empty things. Fix the issue of the behaviour of this guard.

  If I hear of this continuing to be an issue or I face the same issue again, I will know the way this security guard treats clients is a reflection of how you as a bank feel/see me, us, we, as clients. And, as difficult as opening an account is in the country, I will know my business is not in the right place and will move it elsewhere.

Alita Singh

A loyal client for 16 years

We, the residents of Caines Drive, Dutch Quarter, need your urgent attention and help pertaining a problem that has been plaguing for quite some time. It concerns a group of juveniles known in the area as the “Maduro’s children”. These children have been and are causing some serious problems in the neighborhood and are terrorizing the residents in Caines Drive.

  Currently they live in an abandoned house that has no running water or electricity, and they are disposing their feces in bags in the yards of the residents in the vicinity. It has even come to a point where people are afraid to walk the road to go to and from work because of these children.

  They would beg persons walking by for money and gang up on them and steal their belongings such as their phones, their money or anything they have on them at the time. They are also busy breaking into people’s houses when they are at work. As mentioned before, the “Maduro’s children” are underage, they use drugs and are even having sex for money.

  We have lodged so many complaints including calls to the police, and Government concerning the “Maduro’s children”, and all we are hearing is that nothing can be done because these children are under-aged, and that there is nowhere to put them. Because of that, these children are now walking around feeling like they are untouchable and have stated various times that they are not afraid of the police.

  We the residents of Caines Drive are fed up and frustrated with what is going on and the fact that nothing can be done with this situation in the neighborhood. We fear that eventually something bad is going to happened and the only one to blame for that would be the Government of St. Maarten because they failed to help to protect these children.

  It’s a shame that we are now 11 years since 10-10-10 and the country still doesn’t have the proper facilities in place for these kinds of problems we are facing.

  Hoping that the abovementioned situation can be addressed in a timely manner to avoid anyone possibly getting hurt.

Residents of Caines Drive Dutch Quarter

Name withheld at author's request.