(Let us stop Voters Buying…!!!)
Dear Hon. Prime Minister,
We the Voting citizens of Country St. Maarten, would like to bring to your attention of an apparent flaw in our country’s voting process.
It is a well known secret that during the voting process during an election, some voters carry cell phones in the voting booth, primarily to take a picture of the vote, so that they can be compensated for their vote, resulting in “Vote Buying”. This is done behind the “BLACK CURTAIN” in the voting booth. To mitigate this irregularity, other countries in the Caribbean region and in particular the United States during the recently concluded mid term elections, only three sides of the voting booth are visible, the back, and the two sides. There is no curtain in the front.
The existing “Kiesbesluit” with Article 12.(2) regulates the sizing and appearance and setup of the voting booth which is used at the polling stations around the country on election day. In this regard, it would behove your good office to amend or remove the “sentences” which provide the placement of a black curtain on the front of the voting booth, that shields the voter from the Eye of the Electoral Supervisor in the room.
Recently, a sitting member of Parliament has brought this to your attention, and we endorse this call as showing good faith as a first step in Electoral reform.
This issue needs to be addressed immediately, to prevent such reoccurrence at the next general elections whenever they are called.
Kindest regards,
Concerned Citizens Against Voters Buying
