~“The country is suffering while leaders hide behind excuses.”~
PHILIPSBURG:--- In one of the most forceful parliamentary interventions of the year, MP Darryl York delivered a blistering address on Monday, accusing Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercellina and his government of failing the nation’s frontline emergency workers and allowing a two-decade-old crisis to spiral into a national emergency.
Speaking during a public meeting on the ongoing Fire and Ambulance Department go-slow, York eviscerated the Prime Minister’s presentation, describing it as “seven excuses wrapped in administrative language” rather than a meaningful attempt to resolve a worsening public safety threat.
“This is not about what you inherited—this is about what you failed to understand.”
York flatly rejected the Prime Minister’s repeated claim that he “inherited” the current situation.
“Prime Minister, with all due respect: you did not inherit a crisis of paperwork. You inherited—and ignored—a crisis of trust.”
York argued that while the Prime Minister listed procedures, committees, and pending approvals, he completely missed the reason emergency workers are in revolt: decades of broken promises and mounting disrespect.
A Letter Meant to Solve the Crisis Has Now Become Part of It
At the center of the clash is the Prime Minister’s November 5, 2025, letter to the union. York acknowledged that the letter appeared thorough—addressing commitments, placement, retroactive payments, and the function book—but said it ultimately failed in its single most important purpose.
“If everything was handled, Prime Minister, we would not be here today. Your letter didn’t calm the situation—it deepened it.”
York said emergency workers have been given “beautifully written promises that vanish the moment leaders change”, and that the Prime Minister’s letter was viewed as just another entry in a 20-year pattern of non-binding commitments.
York Reveals 2003 Government Letter: “History is repeating itself—again.”
In a dramatic moment, York produced a 2003 government memorandum—complete with stamps, seal, and signature—containing commitments strikingly similar to those in the Prime Minister’s recent letter.
“These letters all look official. They all sound official. And every one of them meant nothing when leadership shifted.”
He then revealed that when the union submitted the 2003 letter earlier this year, they were told: “We’re not honoring that.”
York used this to hammer home his main point: this is why the union demands a legally binding commitment letter, not more political correspondence.
“Frontline workers didn’t complain about delays. They complained about you disrespecting them.”
York insisted the Prime Minister fundamentally misread the mood of the Fire and Ambulance staff.
“When they stormed Parliament, they did not talk about policy. They talked about disrespect. And if the Prime Minister was truly listening, he would have known that.”
York accused the Prime Minister of governing from behind email chains and formal memos rather than through direct engagement with the people risking their lives for the country.
Critical Information Wasn’t Even Communicated to Those Affected
York stunned the chamber by noting that some of the “major updates” the Prime Minister proudly presented—including progress on the Landsverordening and placement processes—were news even to the union.
“How can procedures be moving while the very people concerned are left completely in the dark? This is leadership by assumption—while the country burns.”
“The country is suffering. People may not get help today.”
Perhaps his harshest warning came near the end.
“This is bigger than political pride. Right now, if someone calls for help, they may not get it. That is the reality while we debate paperwork.”
York said that the Prime Minister’s approach—focusing on technicalities while ignoring the collapse of trust—was endangering public safety and risking a national emergency.
A Demanding Call for Immediate Action
York closed by pressing the Prime Minister for immediate, concrete action:
“What will be done today—not next week—to ensure these men and women walk out of here motivated, respected, and ready to end the go-slow?”
He warned that unless the Prime Minister abandons political defensiveness and confronts the trust crisis head-on, the situation will continue to deteriorate.
