ORANJESTAD, ST. EUSTATIUS – Progressive Labor Party(PLP) Leader Clyde van Putten refutes claim by opposition councilman Koos Sneek of ‘playing the race card.’ Van Putten was responding to an earlier allegation made by Sneek following an extraordinary meeting of the Island Council on Sunday May 17th , at which time he stated that he wanted to see more local qualified people taking up leadership roles, in the government apparatus and the community at large.
In dealing with the appointment of the acting secretary general of the island council, of St. Eustatius the PLP leader who did support the re-appointed of Cornell Maduro said that it was high time, that the lady in question be given the opportunity to serve in the function as general secretary.
He said too often that the local professionals are being overlooked for important positions in the society, and van Putten vows to stop to this type of discrimination and injustice to local professionals. In further commenting on Sneek’s accusation the PLP leader wants to remind the general public that the deputy political leader of the PLP Mr. Laurens Duiveman is a white Dutch European and has the full confidence of the leader and the PLP.
He says that he recognized that Mr. Sneek after failing to secure a victory for his party in the last general elections still remains bitter and desperate, and will stop at nothing to try to destabilize the democratically elected government of the people. Councilman Sneek needs to come to terms and realize that we are no longer living in the colonial period where he can preside over the slave plantation, because the slaves themselves has risen up and took charge of their country and is fully in control of their destiny.
In concluding van Putten said that his party was given a mandate to lead and together with coalition partner UPC we will not be distracted by the phony type of politics that Sneek and his Democratic Party is engaged in.
