Madam Prime Minister,Colleagues in the Council of Ministers,
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Media,
Residents of our beloved island.
Good morning.
Preparations for St. Martin Day have already begun. I met with members of the Organizing Committee on Monday to review the planning and discuss several aspects of what would be our first St. Martin Day celebration under our new constitutional dispensation.
The Committee comprises the following persons: Mr. Neville York, as Chairman, Ms. Fabiana Arnell, Secretary; Ms. Cassandra Jansen, Mr. Urmain Dormoy, Ms. Lisa Coffi, Mr. Thierry Gumbs and Ms. Maria van Heyningen, the last two of the Collectivite Territorial in Marigot.
We discussed among other things, the program of activities, decorations for the event, and protocol matters.
St. Martin Day 2011 will be held under the theme: "One Island, One People, One Destiny." We want to give a concrete expression to the idea of unity we proclaim each year on this day, hence I have asked the Committee to come up with suggestions of how we can demonstrate our desire for cooperation between both halves of the island, not just in words, but in a tangible way.
I have full confidence in the Committee and I am sure we will have a St. Martin Day worthy of its name.
On a different subject, 12 high school students drawn from various schools on the island will accompany me on my trip to Monroe College, in New York, this Saturday, October 1, 2011 for a taste of college life for a week. This coincides with their mid-term break. They will be able to sit in at classes, engage in sports activities, and get a general feel of what the College offers in the hope that this would help them make up their minds about seeking admission into this college.
Accommodation and feeding for all 12 students is being taken care of by Monroe College, while their parents are responsible for their airfares and other incidentals.
The trip is at the invitation of Monroe College, with which, you will recall, I recently signed an MOU. I will seize the opportunity to meet with the first batch of St. Martin students who are now pursuing their studies at the New Rochelle campus of Monroe College. I will also hopefully finalize the details of the two full scholarships offered by this institution, which we are yet to make use of.
My Policy Advisor, Mr. Calvin Mardembrough will also be accompanying me on this visit.
The Kingdom Games Steering Committee was here recently and has asked now for St. Martin to submit a bid to host the 2013 Games. You will recall I had announced before that we had practically been granted the rights to host these Games.
Following their visit to various sports facilities on the island, and the fact that Curacao has also argued that since it did not organize the Games in 2011 when it was its turn to do so, it should be allowed to host the 2013 Games.
In my meeting this morning with the Sports Department to plan the way forward, we also discussed establishing a Committee that would put together the bid, which has to be submitted by the end of October, with the final decision being taken in December of this year.
Later this afternoon, I will be joining Minister Franklin Meyers at the Philipsburg Community and Cultural Center, Backstreet, to launch the Youth Entrepreneurial Program, which is a joint SBDF/GB3 project. I guess I do not need to go into further details regarding this, other than to invite you the media to join us there at 3:00PM.
On that note, I thank you for your attention and await whatever questions you may have for me.