PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Finance Ardwell Irion said on Wednesday that the CFT made wrongful statements in their letter of October 12th regarding St. Maarten’s intention to float a bond for NAF 75M. Irion said that while the articles in the CFT regulation are vague, he said article 16 pertains to capital expenditures which St. Maarten is adhering to. The bond he requested to float is to cover government operations, social charges, food vouchers, and other issues the government is faced with due to the pandemic.
He said that the government is seeking finances to continue to support certain programs and not capital expenditures.
Irion explained that since receiving the letter from the CFT he already contacted them and asked that they clarify their statements since their assumptions are wrong. The Minister of Finance said that these are all scare tactics. He made clear that as Minister he has a responsibility towards St. Maarten and its people by seeking alternative solutions that would keep the country afloat while the discussions continue even though parliament passed a motion about the CFT.
