Philipsburg:--- Appointed Minister of Tourism and Economic Affairs Franklin Meyers decided to clear the air on Wednesday on the fall of the UP/DP government. Meyers said there were lots of things he had to tolerate while in office for the past 19 months simply because he was an appointed Minister and not one that was elected by the voters.Minister Meyers said that he feels that the former coalition government UP/DP was a stable government and they worked hard over the period of time they held office. Meyers said now that his government fell he is not looking for anyone's sympathy instead he wants to clear the air regarding certain rumors because if they are not addressed they will live a life of their own. Meyers said that everyone on St. Maarten knows that his companion is Brenda Wathey, furthermore one of the reasons given for the fall of the UP/DP government is because many persons are of the opinion that most of the government contracts were awarded to Brenda Wathey. Minister Meyers said several Members of Parliament have been making these comments behind the scenes. He said should these Members of Parliament make the statements publicly then his intention is to take them to court where they would have to prove what they are saying. "My challenge to Frans Richardson, Romaine La Ville, Roy Marlin, and Petrus Le Roy de Weever is to prove what they have said about Brenda Wathey and Franklin Meyers. If these MP's can prove what they are saying then I am guilty as charged, but I know they cannot prove those things and if they say it publicly then I intend to take them to court, because this government has fallen because of their greed and self interest." Furthermore, St. Maarten is heading to a dangerous place because of self interest. "What I am saying now will manifest itself. I am not crying sour grapes because the people of St. Maarten know what they got when I was in office. I have always been open to the media and the only time I did not respond to the media was when May Lyn Chung was appointed as the Director of the Tourism Office. I was not ready at the time to release the information when the media asked me. I have never used my office for my own self interest and if anyone says that publicly I will loose my lawyers on them because it's all blatant lies. I advised Brenda to go out there and defend herself. She was accused of having shares in Pelican."
Meyers said that it is rumored the catering and cleaning services for the Princess Juliana International Airport were supposed to be taken away from the present contractors (GODDART and Eugene James) and given to Brenda Wathey. Meyers said it is also rumored that the taxi concessions at the AC Wathey Cruise Facility will be taken away from the Dutch Taxi Association (DSTA) and be given to Brenda Wathey, all of which he said has no truth and it is all blatant lies. Meyers said that since he was not an elected Minister he did not think he should be the one to say things that would have jeopardize the UP/DP government. Meyers further explained that over the past year and a half he and his family were targeted to the point where he could not defend themselves because if he did he would have been used as the scapegoat for the demise of the government. "Today, I am able to talk and defend myself because the baby has been born and I am the father," as he refers to the fall of the UP/DP government.
Minister Meyers has since issued a challenge to the Members of Parliament that are saying that all of the contracts were going to be awarded to Brenda Wathey; to prove such since he has always lived his life as an open book. Minister Meyers said that he was referred to as the "mafia and king-pin" during his tenure in government all of which has taken him by surprise. Meyers said one thing for sure he never made any two million dollar deal and neither did he ask for payment in exchange of licenses as the Minister of Economic Affairs. He further stated that he sleeps well at night. Meyers said that while certain MP's are saying publicly that they have not received anything and that it's about the people of St. Maarten. He said they are all using their seats in Parliament for their own interest.
"Nowhere in the world you have Parliamentarians go to the offices of Ministers and set up meetings with people and travel to Miami and inviting the Ministers. These are some of the real reasons why the UP/DP government fell." Meyers said those are some of the conditions they were forced to work under yet they did it. He said at no time did he disrespect any of the MP's and he did meet with them whenever they wanted to meet. He also made clear that there are certain legislative measures and rules that had to be followed. Meyers said that was one of the reasons he did not attend the meetings that were planned in Miami because he had to be able to defend himself and his name. The outgoing Minister said he is not afraid to be in St. Maarten even though he was born in Sint Eustatius to St. Maarten parents. Meyers went as far as saying that he helped the St. Maarten people in several ways throughout in his life. "I have saved people who were about to lose their homes, and I also help people by granting them taxi licenses. I also went to banks and guaranteed loans for people whether or not I was in politics."
As for the UP faction leader Romaine La Ville who claims he is an activist and a man for the people and who could not fly first class to see a fight and lose $1000.00 in a bet. Meyers said he is guilty of going to Las Vegas to see a boxing match on November 12th 2011 but he did not bet any money on the fight. Meyers said it would have been a tragedy if he had traveled on government's expense but he traveled to Las Vegas at his own expense. Furthermore, he made clear that he traveled the world at his own expense and people should be rewarded when they work hard. Meyers said there are lots of things he cannot relate to for example he cannot relate to going to Tantra night club and spending $1,500 in the VIP lounge on weekends. Meyers said people need to know how to spend their money. His advice however, especially the young people should spend their monies wisely. Meyers said he resigned from politics in 2007 and because of the support the UP received in 2010 he was appointed. Meyers also announced on Thursday that he will be contesting the 2014 Parliamentary elections and he will expose the MP's that are currently in Parliament. "I will be their worst nightmare I will expose them and show what it is to be for the people of St. Maarten because I have always looked out for the people of St. Maarten." Meyers said he knows his limits and cheap service. "Let's talk about Sucker Garden I once lived in Pelican with Brenda Wathey but I built my house in Sucker Garden, the business that I owned is in Sucker Garden while I built a sports facility in Sucker Garden when I was Commissioner of Sports. I don't do lip service I live by example and I am a true Sucker Garden man. I did not move from Sucker Garden to the Suburb, instead I moved from the Suburb to Sucker Garden." Meyers made clear that he will not tolerate blame for anything that he did not do because he is able and capable of defending himself. Meyers said that the UP is down now but they are definitely not out. He predicted that the incoming coalition will not last seven months.
Minister Meyers said that as of Friday he will no longer be in office as a Minister but will continue to receive his salary for the next two years. He said throwing the government down adds more stress on the government's budget. "I will be doing nothing for the next two years but being a pain in the new government's backside while campaigning for the 2014 elections."
