Sarah Wescot determined to get timeshare law moving

September 02, 2015 8:13 AM
PHILIPSBURG--Too much time has been wasted on moving forward with the draft timeshare legislation while the country’s reputation has sustained damage.
 
For those reasons, Democratic Party (DP) leader Member of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams is determined to see the draft initiative law to protect timeshare owners and buyers that her party proposed in the last parliamentary terms moving in full swing.
 
The initiative law, written in English, was reviewed by the advisory bodies and government had to give its position and comments on the law. At that step, Wescot-Williams had met with Tourism and Economic Affairs Minister Claret Connor who was on board with getting some regulation in place.
 
However, it now appears that the minister wants to pursue the drafting of an entirely new law to regulate the timeshare sector. Wescot-Williams said Connor has indicated to her in a letter that together with his legal advisors he was looking into “redoing” the draft law or to “draft new” legislation.
 
The MP awaits a clear position from the minister to help her determine whether to draw back her party’s legislation or continue to move full speed ahead with the draft law.
 
Regulating the troubled industry has taken “too long” to get legislation, she said. “I can’t see so much wrong with the draft.”
 
The draft legislation is supported by St. Maarten Timeshare Association (SMTA) and ARDA-Resort Owners’ Coalition ARDA-ROC. “This legislation would have helped to prevent this travesty and yet still awaits debate and ratification,” said DP Fraction Advisor Emil Lee.
 
Referring to a recent court verdict in favour of timeshare owners, Lee said, “We celebrate the legal victory of the handful of timeshare tourists who were willing to organise against a well-funded and larger opponent … but, what we don’t see are the thousands of timeshare owners at the former Caravanserai who gave up and as a consequence signed away their rights.”
 
On the topic of the country’s infrastructure, Wescot-Williams said it continues to be troubling that government is not moving on priority projects such as the country’s drainage plan and the upgrading of Union Road, a project that was tied in to the construction of the Simpson Bay Causeway.
 
She queried what has happened to the Harbour Group footing the bill for the Union Road upgrade. Her query stemmed from ad interim Infrastructure Minister Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs informing her via letter that there was no money for that project as well as others totalling some NAf. 24 million.
 
She chided government for paying for the Vorst land in Cay Hill, instead of directing the money to projects crucial to the country’s safety.
Wescot-Williams has also called on Minister Connor to give an explanation why some 2,200 business licences were not collected from the Department of Economic Affairs. Those licences are slated to be destroyed.
 
The MP said she will be enquiring why government had committed to paying US $165,000 for a boxing match that is yet to happen as well as the progress with St. Maarten Medical Center and the still to be dealt with amendments to the Civil Code to regulate short-term labour contracts.
 
The Daily Herald

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