Philipsburg, Sint Maarten — “As a coalition partner in this government, I regret that I/we have not been apprised of the decision by the Prime Minister to ask the Members of the Corporate Governance Council (CGC) to make their positions available”, stated MP Sarah Wescot-Williams.
In fact, decisions of this nature are precisely what belong on the table of all coalition partners. Whatever the specifics of the case turn out to be, DP is of the opinion that this matter should have been handled differently. “I do not expect the Council to take this lying down, thus another potential for a protracted conflict. This is not in keeping with the stability the DP advocates.”
The CGC was put in place to maintain a level of transparency, accountability and proper checks and balances. Any attempt to interfere with this institution for whatever reasons undermines our democratic principles of good governance and our democratic institutional framework. Coalition partners have not been privy to the advice of the CGC regarding the nomination/appointment of a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) position of TELEM, but it is no secret who the nominated persons are.
The CGC bases its decisions on the Corporate Governance Code which is founded on principles of good governance that are internationally recognized. CGC is merely an advisory body, however, if a Minister chooses to go against the advice of the CGC, the reason for doing so must be properly motivated and explained.
“We haven’t discussed this topic in COM and personally, I don’t see why dismiss the CGC at this stage and in this way. The CGC is an advisory body. With motivation, the council of ministers can overrule their advice”, Minister E. Lee (DP) added.
