Philipsburg:--- Prime Minister Sarah Wescot Williams refuted the allegations that her government is cutting back on old age pension and onderstand (social assistance) on Wednesday when asked for clarity on the issue during the Council of Ministers Press Briefing. Wescot Williams said government is not cutting back on any monies that are allocated to pensioners or social welfare recipients. However, she said that she is aware of several cases where people who are residing outside of St. Maarten are not getting their full pension dues even though they worked most of their years on the Dutch side of the island.The Prime Minister said the regulations that govern the payment for pensioners are grossly affecting people living abroad. Persons residing over the border (French side) are considered to be living in a foreign country. "I am personally aware of some of cases where people are just receiving Naf. 50 + per month even though they worked most of their years on the Dutch side.'
However, Chief Operations Officer of SZV Reginald Willemsberg said nobody's pension was cut, he said the law of September 1960 is still applicable for persons who are residing on the Dutch side and was not registered from age 15. Willemsberg said there are persons who reside on the French side and has worked on the Dutch side and they are not registered at the census office and they also did not fill in their taxes on the Dutch side where they worked that are also affected.
Willemsberg said persons who cannot prove their residency through census office registration and tax returns run into problems with their pensions. The SZV Operations Officer said that there are persons who do not have insurance and have signed up for private insurance with SZV. Those persons would find that their pension is lower since 10.4% of their pension dues is deducted to cover the cost of the insurance. Willemsberg said that only persons who requested such insurance and has signed off on the deductions will encounter a reduction in their pension allowance.
As for social assistance recipients, those persons Wescot Williams said cannot receive more than the minimum wage. The Prime Minister said there is a structure in place to calculate social assistance and the applicant's income is one of the things that come into play when the file is dealt with. The Prime Minister said she believes that they have to revisit the law on social assistance for both the elderly and the unemployed. She said she even went as far as tabling a motion which would address the social assistance for the elderly who may have a savings account. The Prime Minister said elderly persons with savings account are not eligible for social assistance. She gave an example that shows that only when someone is a pauper they are able to obtain Naf. 300:- or so to survive.
In the meantime, SMN News has learnt that the St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation has sent several letters to their tenants and the residents at the Red Cross informing them that Government did not pay their subsidies and as such their full rent will be deducted from their accounts which includes their pensions and social assistance.
