Philipsburg:--- "Let justice take its course and let us not jump to conclusions, until the investigation is completed. St. Maarten has the same laws as Holland that Aruba and Curacao do not have to investigate politicians such as Ministers and Members of Parliament," those were the words of Minister of Justice Roland Duncan in an interview with SMN News on Friday as he was questioned by SMN News about the video tape circulating on the internet involving Member of Parliament Patrick Illidge who was seen collecting what looks like cash from the owner of Bada Bing, Jaap van den Heuvel on September 30th, 2012 in exchange for several favors.
Duncan said that when he heard that the VDSM who falls under the Prime Minister of St. Maarten has a video tape where Member of Parliament Patrick Illidge was seen taking monies from the owner of the exotic club he asked the Prime Minister Sarah Wescot Williams to instruct the VDSM to turn over the video tape to the Attorney General of Curacao, St. Maarten, and the BES Islands Dick Piar or his deputy on St. Maarten Taco Stein.
The Minister of Justice said he already got word that the tape was handed over to the Attorney General and it is now being studied. "What bothers me is that the VDSM is a security service that gathers information on St. Maarten and they are supposed to inform and turn over information to the Prime Minister. They have this information and instead of breaking the news on St. Maarten where the alleged crime was committed, they sent it to the Netherlands in order to embarrass St. Maarten and to get St. Maarten on its knees to support the BES Islands."
Duncan said he will not allow the Dutch (Netherlands) to meddle in what appears to be a crime on St. Maarten when St. Maarten has the same laws as the Netherlands and the people that are working as Attorney General and at the Prosecutor's Office were appointed by the Dutch and not by St. Maarten. The Minister of Justice who was appointed by MP Patrick Illidge said that there is European Dutch working for the RST, Marechaussee, and at the Prosecutor's Office and he has no control over those persons. "They are saying they cannot trust the integrity of these people then why should St. Maarten trust theirs? Let me make clear the Public Prosecutor's Office and Attorney General do not need anything from me to start any type of investigations." Duncan said his name was called and so were others, all of whom are entitled to due process. Duncan said he read some articles where the Dutch is saying they will ask Minister Plasterk to handle the investigation because they in the Netherlands do not trust St. Maarten. "Well the people that have to investigate cases such as these are European Dutch and they were appointed by the Dutch so what they in the second chamber are saying is that they don't trust their own people."
Duncan said the contents of the video tape are indeed bothersome and it is also embarrassing. He also feels bad about what he sees on the tape which he looked at a number of times as he analyzed the contents of the tape. However, the Minister of Justice who is lawyer by profession says he wants to make a distinction between politics and a criminal procedure. Duncan said not all of what is on the video can be qualified as acts of criminality. When he was asked if the part that shows the MP accepting monies from the businessman can be considered a criminal act, Duncan said that part looks very much like a criminal act but he believes the investigators would have to determine whether or not it was money and if the tape was doctored. Duncan said when someone looks at the tape it does not look or sound good but even so no one should jump to conclusions. Duncan said the people of St. Maarten should allow due process to take place by allowing those investigating to apply the applicable laws and also allow the person that is under investigation to have fair treatment. Duncan said part of due process is that a person is innocent until proven guilty whether people like it or not. "We can jump to conclusions and apply our own meaning on what is seen on the video, but one must remember that St. Maarten has laws which have to be respected." The Minister further explained that if St. Maarten is a country then she must be allowed to handle the problems she faces and deal with them appropriately. Secondly, I read where Holland wants to have their own investigation because they don't trust the system because Roland Duncan is the Minster of Justice." Duncan said he will not agree neither would he cooperate with Holland on what they want. When asked if it is because he was appointed Minister of Justice by MP Illidge, Duncan said that was not the case because St. Maarten is a country that is governed by laws. He said there is nothing in the Kingdom Charter that allows the Netherlands not to trust St. Maarten. He said if that is allowed the investigation will become dirty with politics and Holland would profit from St. Maarten's dilemma.
Duncan said that there are people who wants to see St. Maarten down in the ground or on its face. He said since the story broke he sought legal advice on his Ministry and his position as Minister of Justice.
The Minister of Justice said that based on the current laws, politicians that are suspected of a crime or are being investigated will be suspended pending the outcome of the investigation. He said this was placed in the law simply because some years ago former State Secretary Joan Berkle was asked to resign when she was suspected of committing a crime and to date that person cannot clear her name or even work. "Joan Berkle was asked to resign from her position and years later she received a letter from the Prosecutor's Office that states that there is not sufficient evidence to prosecute." Duncan further explained even though that was done Berkle's name and character can never be cleared and there is nothing that can compensate her for what she endured.
Here is the video courtesy of The Daily Herald:
