~I am the first homegrown Minister that is controversial figure within the Ministry of Justice~
PHILIPSBURG: --- Minister of Justice Lyndon Lewis told parliament on Monday that he is the only home-grown Minister of Justice who has taken office since St. Maarten became a country within the Kingdom. He also informed Parliament that he knows that he is a controversial figure and that one day, someone will walk into his office because of who he is and what he stands for. Lewis said his position is honorable whether it is the same for the prosecutor's Office or Police Management; it is for him because he was born and raised in St. Maarten.
The Minister said he did nothing wrong since taking office; however, there are people who have problems because he is now the boss of persons who have been his senior in the past. Those people, he said, will do anything to see him fail as a Minister, but that he said will not happen. He then proceeded to quote a bible verse (Romans 8:31) that states that no weapon formed against him shall prosper. He said he came in as Minister of Justice nine years after being sent home from his job. “They have tried their utmost best to find something to prosecute him for because he stands for the rights of the people, and that will not happen. I am not afraid of any man who breathes like me. They came in specifically for electronic devices, and they tackled one of his colleagues. They were also looking for the Minister so they can get my devices, the laptop and phones if they want they could walk in this honorable house and take it because I have nothing to hide, I have executed my job with the highest integrity.”
The Minister went on to say that the Prosecutors (OM) makes space for whomever they want, he said he just received a message informing him that there is an order he has to sign for immigration. “I am accustomed to getting orders to release “bolitas slickers” people that are smuggling in drugs but are not being sentenced for any crime in St. Maarten. “But when someone contacts the Minister pertaining to their rights, and I disseminate the work to my colleagues who work with me, they are the ones that are being attacked. This shows me where our interest lies in this country. I have prisoners who have contacted me about their eyesight. I also spoke to the OM about the prisoner with the tumor, yet I received negative advice for his release, and the OM asked me if I knew what crime the prisoner committed.? However, since the matter came up here in parliament, I have received positive advice. I know that certain management teams have problems with me as Minister of Justice because when BZK came here recently, they asked me about the deplorable prison cells. I asked them who informed them, and they said they were informed by the Prosecutors Office and KPSM Management team, but those persons did not bring the matter to my attention as Minister of Justice.”
These statements were in response to the recent search of his office, which made headlines on Friday evening.
The demissionary Minister of Justice said the reason he is a controversial figure is because he fought for his rights and those of his colleagues, something management teams do not like. He said he learned in the police academy in Curacao that employers (bosses) will always remember one’s obligations but often time forget that the employees have rights. Lewis said he does not know when elected or appointed Ministers will actually stand up and lead this country. He said he has been asking himself who exactly the ministers are. Is it the department heads or the prosecutor's Office, or is it the persons who took an oath to serve the country wholeheartedly? He lamented that when these department heads give advice, Ministers do not have to take it, but whenever their advice is not taken, they will sit in the type of hot water he is sitting in. His message to all Ministers here and abroad is that they are leaders, and the moment they take a stand to lead, these are the types of things that will happen, but only GOD will protect us all.
