PHILIPSBURG – Governor Eugène Holiday has appointed Theo Heyliger, leader of the United Democrats (UD), as a formateur. He must now form the government that can count on the widest possible support in the new parliament.
Limited options
Heyliger’s options are limited because the Christian SMCP party has indicated that does not want to cooperate with the United St Maarten party (USP) of Frans Richardson. According to the informateurs (informants) Nilda Arduin and Jan Beaujon, the cooperation between the two largest parties, UD with 7 seats and National Alliance with 5 seats, is complicated because of clashing personalities of the politicians involved. This leaves only two options: a UD government with the USP (with 9 seats in the 15-seat parliament) or a combination with the SMCP (8 seats).
Focus on unity
On Tuesday and Wednesday, Governor Holiday spoke with the leaders of the parties that have one or more seats in the new parliament about the advice of the informants. In those discussions, Holiday emphasized the importance of unity and cooperation in the interest of the population.
Formateur Heyliger has been asked to use the report from the informants as the basis for his work. Heyliger must also submit a coalition agreement with his final report.