Dear Reader
We believe, if we recall correctly, it was The Daily Herald that once had an April Fool's Joke about a 'Land Grab' on the ring road. The first set of people to show up and stake their claim, would get a piece of land on the ring road.
Well, it looks like that
land grab took place just recently and it is no joke, despite our bag of
Robin Hood flour satire.
Amazingly, the
justification coming out of the former minister's camp seems to be: the minister gave the land to LOCALS. So it is okay.
No, it's not okay.
And it is also not okay that persons should be owning multiple pieces of government long lease land.
No, it is not okay that people should be holding on to government long lease land and not doing anything with the land. That is a direct contravention of the terms of the government long lease: the land should be developed and put to use within six months after the granting of the land.
Yet, we can point out many lots of government long lease land that are undeveloped, bare, unused, some even at prime locations, but the ownership hidden away in overseas offshore companies. How is that even legally possible?
Only in S'maartin.
We are also of the opinion that the selling of the economic rights and the chain sale of government long lease land at ever increasing prices from one buyer to the next is a form of money laundering that has been going on in St. Maarten for years.
We have used this platform before to propagate the establishment of a Land Tribunal. This entity should also be used to investigate and make an inventory of the ownership of all government lease land on St. Maarten.
However, like the idea of lowering the salaries of members of Parliament and government ministers and curbing shipjumping, the idea of tackling and unraveling the ownership of all the government long lease land may just be another
fata morgana.
Talk about elusive vs illusion.
Only in S'maartin!
A now for some
huishoudelijke medelingen...
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###
Advisory Message ###
For the month of
February 2018
the five-volume
The Laws of St. Maarten
can be purchased at the reduced price of
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per set at Van Dorp Bookstores on Illidge Road and in Simpson Bay.
We encourage every citizen on St. Maarten to buy and READ
The Laws of St. Maarten
. See the advertorial below in this newsletter for more information.
###
End of Advisory Message ###
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