Questions to TEATT Minister on alleged fraud in KITLV Survey

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PHILIPSBURG – President of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams has dispatched questions to Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunication (TEATT) Ingrid Arrindell pertaining to the recently corroborated reports of fraud in the KITLV survey carried out on St. Maarten by “seasoned interviewers,” who were hired as independent interviewers via the Department of Statistics (STAT).

In her letter to the Minister Arrindell, Wescot-Williams questioned what – if any – actions would be taken by the STAT department, and whether it is STAT’s intention to revisit previous surveys done on St. Maarten by (some of) these interviewers, such as the population census.

Wescot-Williams is of the opinion that at this stage it is important that St. Maarten also gets an indication of how persons view and feel about the new constitutional status. “Such a survey should, however, be combined with other socio-political questions that can provide an impression of the general sentiments of the population,” Wescot-Williams stated.