~ECYS Minister tells Parliament: Government, parents, businesses, churches, educators and communities must accept responsibility for the environment surrounding Sint Maarten’s youth.~
PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Melissa Gumbs ended her 2026 budget presentation with one of the sharpest social warnings delivered during the budget debate, arguing that Government cannot claim to be protecting young people while allowing bars and lottery booths to operate around places where students spend their time.
Gumbs went well beyond the numbers in her ECYS budget presentation, turning her closing remarks into a direct challenge to parents, businesses, government departments, churches, educators, school boards and the wider community.
Her message was straightforward: Government funding alone will not solve the problems confronting Sint Maarten's children.
The minister specifically called on government departments and the Chamber of Commerce to be more thoughtful about the types of businesses allowed to open and where they can operate.
Then came her strongest warning.
"We cannot complain about students falling into alcohol and other vices when we plop bars and lottery booths right in front of where they spend the most time."
Gumbs also challenged private-sector businesses that complain about worker quality, saying they must recognize their role in producing the outcomes they criticize.
“Once upon a time, y'all had a code. Find it again.”
The minister did not stop with businesses.
She pointed directly to bartenders and others selling products to young people, saying private-sector workers must understand their responsibility when it comes to serving alcohol to minors.
She also directed a blunt message at people operating in the informal economy and interacting with children and teenagers:
"Once upon a time, y'all had a code. Find it again."
Gumbs additionally called on churches to emphasize inclusion and understanding rather than fear and restriction, while telling educators, school managers and boards that they must be willing to learn, meet students where they are and avoid imposing personal biases on young people.
Parents cannot outsource responsibility to Government
Her remarks also challenged the increasingly common expectation that because residents pay taxes, Government alone must resolve problems in education, youth development, culture and sports.
Gumbs acknowledged that taxpayers are entitled to expect Government to perform its responsibilities.
But she argued that money can only take a society so far.
According to the minister, successful education, culture and sports systems elsewhere cannot be explained by government expenditure alone; they also depend on how much families, communities, organizations and individuals contribute.
Parents, she said, must be involved in their children's lives and push them to progress, while extended families also have a responsibility to provide consistency and care. NGOs and non-profits should collaborate and maximize available resources, while sports associations cannot expect the government alone to carry their programs.
Minister tells young people: speak up
Perhaps the strongest part of Gumbs' closing message was directed at students themselves.
The minister said her comments had been informed by questions, complaints and concerns brought directly to her.
She urged young people to become advocates for themselves and their communities rather than remain silent when something is wrong.
"If something bothers you, speak up about it," Gumbs said, adding that experiences and realities are too often swept under the rug.
Her conclusion was even more pointed:
"If it is to be fixed, it must be dragged into the light."
She said young people often feel they live in a society that talks about them and campaigns on them but does not actually listen, and urged them to be loud, expressive and to show up for themselves.
A bigger question for Government
Gumbs' comments now raise an obvious policy question beyond ECYS.
If Government acknowledges that bars, lottery operations and other businesses positioned around places frequented by children can contribute to an unhealthy environment, what policies exist to prevent those businesses from being established near schools and youth facilities?
Her remarks place the issue not only at the feet of ECYS, but also economic-affairs authorities, licensing bodies and other agencies responsible for business establishment and enforcement.
The minister's argument was ultimately broader than the Cg. 125.97 million budget she came to Parliament to defend.
Sint Maarten can spend millions on schools, youth programmes, sports, scholarships and education reform, but Gumbs' message was that the environment children return to after leaving the classroom matters just as much.
And if adults, businesses and institutions create that environment, Government cannot credibly demand better outcomes from young people without also confronting what surrounds them.
