PHILIPSBURG – St Maarten will have a female prime minister when the small Dutch Caribbean island becomes a “separate country” within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Notwithstanding her Democratic Party’s (DP) being able to win just two of the 15 seats in Parliament during the September 17 elections, veteran politician Sarah Wescott-Williams will take the oath of prime minister replacing William Marlin, whose ruling National Alliance party (NA) was not able to win a majority of seats at the polls.
St Maarten’s first parliament will be sworn in on October 10.
The NA won seven seats and Marlin described as “unfair to the voters” who had given the NA a “resounding victory”, the circumstances that led to Wescott-William attaining the leadership of the government here.
The relatively new United People party (UP) led by Theo Heyliger won six seats and joined ranks with the NA to form the new coalition government.
Marlin claims that the two parties had been in talks about a coalition even before the polls had closed.
“They were intent on forming a coalition to shut out the National Alliance. Immediately after the preliminary election results were announced I signalled my intention to initiate formation talks immediately. I called on parties to bury their political hatchets and work in the best interest of St Maarten,” he said even as he extended congratulations to the new government.
St Maarten in June 2000 voted to become an autonomous country within the Netherland Antilles a move that would put the country in a direct relationship with the Netherlands, as opposed to the current status of island territory of the Netherlands Antilles.
Curacao, which is also part of the Netherland Antilles, held similar elections on August 27. (CMC)