Esteemed citizens of St. Maarten, today it is imperative that I provide you with an update on this Ennia Saga. Since my last appearance in Parliament, I have continued to carefully investigate the outline agreement and also explore alternative solutions. My intention was to go to parliament again this week to provide answers to the questions posed; however, due to an error in the date provided by Parliament, which led to a misunderstanding, the meeting will be rescheduled. However aside from answering the questions it is vital that I provide you the residents of Sint Maarten and specifically the Sint Maarten ennia policy holders with an update.
My main focus remains on two groups: the Sint Maarten policyholders and country Sint Maarten. It’s important to understand that Sint Maarten can cover and repay what is owed to its policyholders, specifically what they have contributed to their pension policy. The problem lies mainly with Curaçao, who cannot independently cover the obligations for their policy holders. If Ennia were to go bankrupt, Curaçao would face significant problems, which could also impact the Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten (CBCS) and by default will impact Sint Maarten because of the joint monetary union. This is why, according to the Dutch, the continuation of Ennia is necessary and was linked to the covid loans, I would emphasize once again, I do not agree with the correlation of forced higher interest rates of a global pandemic loan being linked to saving a private entity. This is a prime example of how we are being penalized due to the joint monetary union. It raises a significant question that we, as Sint Maarten, may need to thoroughly investigate: Is this union truly in our best interest?
One major concern in the outline agreement is something called the “peak facility.” To explain it simply, the peak facility is an indirect loan that would be used if the funds contributed by the countries are not enough to meet the financial obligations of this new foundation called the resolution fund. To simplify this, imagine two people buying a house together—Peter pays his share of 5 every month, and Jane pays 20. If they need a loan, even though Peter can manage his payments, he would still be responsible for part of the loan because Jane can’t pay her share. This is what is happening with the peak facility. While Sint Maarten can meet its obligations, Curaçao cannot, and under the current setup, both countries would share the loan. This construct will lead to Sint Maarten being tricked into covering costs that don’t belong to us, which I as Minister of Finance cannot in good conscience allow.
When I requested to exclude Sint Maarten from this peak facility arrangement and just let St. Maarten pay the amount owed yearly to the Sint Maarten policy holders, I discovered more information. It turns out that under this signed agreement Sint Maarten is not only covering its own policyholders but also paying millions for BES and Suriname policyholders. Initially, I was informed by my advisor who was part of the initial discussions that Curaçao had stated that they would cover the Suriname policyholders, but when he asked for clarification, he was told by Curacao that only what’s signed in the agreement matters, not what was promised or discussed. This shows how important it is to carefully review and comprehend any agreement before signing it. This is the exact reason I am taking my time to understand this agreement and why I have been stating that it is not in the benefit of country Sint Maarten.
Additionally, Sint Maarten’s share includes a significant amount to cover the yearly execution costs for the new foundation. It is important that Sint Maarten tax payers know that based on this signed outline agreement they are not only covering the Sint Maarten policy holders expenses in addition the tax payers of Sint Maarten will also be paying millions for the costs of policy holders of the BES and suriname and also the yearly operational expenses of a private company. While our own St. Maarten companies are suffering we are completely aiding and abetting a privately owned company, Ennia, with its primary benefits, taxes and social premiums, employment being in Curacao. Which I absolutely do not agree with.
We posed many questions, we questioned why these costs are so high and what they cover exactly? We also questioned why the countries have to cover these costs? Are no costs being covered by the new ennia or by investments made? We also asked about funds that were previously seized, wondering if they were used to reduce the debt owed by the countries and how exactly? These are a few matters that came to light after our request to be excluded from the peak facility and just commit to paying what is owed to the Sint Maarten policy holders on a yearly basis.
These matters were discussed with the Central Bank technical team, who understood our valid concerns and they agreed to draft an addendum to make Sint Maarten’s obligations and commitments clearer as I deem this very important to prevent future mix ups and discussions on who agreed to pay what. Some of the proposed changes include, but not limited to:
- Separating the peak facility so that Sint Maarten and Curaçao each have their own, preventing any mixing of funds that aren’t Sint Maarten’s responsibility.
- Excluding BES and Suriname policyholders, focusing solely on Sint Maarten policyholders.
- Setting up a separate administration for Sint Maarten policyholders.
- Clearly defining who qualifies as a Sint Maarten policyholder to prevent misunderstandings.
- First rights to the purchase of mullet bay
- Outlining our yearly obligations in a new addendum, showing that Sint Maarten will not need to rely on the peak facility, which avoids additional interest costs. The only reason we would need to make use of the separate Sint Maarten peak facility would be if the central bank fails to provide the promised dividend.
- With these adjustments, we won’t need to budget 200K guilders per year which we are now forced to do, as we don’t expect to use the peak facility.
We have received this addendum from the technical team on Monday and are carefully reviewing it. As your Minister of Finance, I took an oath to act in the best interest of Sint Maarten and its people. Allowing Parliament to approve the current agreement without doing everything possible to ensure it benefits Sint Maarten would be a disservice to our country, and that is something I cannot accept. The connection to the COVID loans, which I still oppose and find unfair, means we are being pressured because, if we don’t comply, we will face financial penalties with higher interest rates. However, I am determined to do everything in my power to ensure that we do not take on costs that have nothing to do with Sint Maarten even if that means temporarily having a higher interest rate as it would save the country of Sint Maarten millions in the long run. Remember when it was said that nothing can be changed? The proof is in the pudding—it can, has and will continue to change to ensure the benefit and interest of Country and people of St. Maarten.
We are in ongoing communication with the technical team, asking important questions and requesting changes and clarifications that will protect and safeguard our country from being liable for hidden costs within this signed outline agreement. Once our review is complete, my intention is to present Parliament with this revised addendum to the outline agreement—an agreement I hope to fully support because the current terms are not acceptable.
To the policy holders of St. Maarten, please rest assured that your contribution are secured; however, it is my duty to as the Minister of Finance to make sure that this contract is not to the detriment of country St. Maarten. I remain at your disposable for any further clarifications needed.
Thank you for your attention. Your continued support is greatly appreciated. I hope this provides more insight in what I have been continuously saying pertaining to this signed outline agreement, which is not in the benefit of country St. Maarten. As your Minister of Finance, I, Marinka Gumbs remain committed to keeping you informed, providing you with accurate information and working in the benefit of Sint Maarten and its people.
