PHILIPSBURG:--- "We are busy with the process of waking up the population as to the importance of the involvement of the whole community in building St. Maarten" was the Prime Minister's answer when asked why the process of the National Development Plan is so important during a radio interview on Friday. The PM again reiterated the importance of involving the whole community in drafting the National Development Plan, a common vision for the country.
"St. Maarten can sometimes be a community where persons go about their daily lives not thinking about the bigger picture, a common vision. That is not yet what the situation is and we want to get there. As part of the process to come to the NDP there is a lot of dialogue and consultation to take place. We need the input of as many as possible for the development of St. Maarten. This cannot mean that everyone will have the same opinion and it is particularly those opinions, those inputs that we are looking for. The National Development Plan is a product for the vision of St. Maarten at the end of the trajectory that we are now in. What we do to get to the NDP is just as important as the final product. For St. Maarten it is new to seek the engagement in a process that will lead to a collective vision. What we are doing is encouraging people to be a part of the Country, the Nation in which we reside," stated the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister handed out certificates to some fifty persons from within all sectors of the community who graduated on Wednesday from the Democratic Dialogue Course. These graduates will form in integral part in getting all from within the community to be a part of the Nation Building Process.
From the Cabinet of the Prime Minister