PHILIPSBURG:--- The Police Force of Sint Maarten (KPSM) advises the public that persistent and ongoing illegal parking along Rhine Road in the Maho area and at the entrance of Beacon Hill Road has forced the police to take decisive enforcement action. Despite repeated complaints, warnings, and preventive measures implemented over an extended period, traffic violations at this location have persisted, creating serious disruptions to traffic flow and posing risks to road users and pedestrians.
Over the past several weeks, KPSM has received multiple requests and complaints regarding illegal parking along Rhine Road leading into the Maho area, as well as at the entrance of Beacon Hill Road. Community officers assigned to the Maho area have, over time, implemented several measures to discourage drivers from parking on sidewalks.
In collaboration with concerned parents and community members, concrete dividers were placed to prevent vehicles from parking on pedestrian walkways. However, drivers have adjusted their behavior and have begun parking on the roadway itself. This has narrowed the entrance to Beacon Hill Road and the roundabout leading into Maho, significantly affecting traffic flow in this heavily used area.
As the preventive measures proved ineffective, KPSM transitioned to active enforcement. On Tuesday, February 3rd, 2026, police officers conducted enforcement at the location, during which fines were issued, and several vehicles were towed for traffic violations. These actions were taken in accordance with the clearly posted no-stopping/no-parking signs present in the area.
KPSM strongly urges residents, tour operators (including large and small buses), ATV rental companies, and visitors to refrain from parking along Rhine Road in Maho and at the entrance of Beacon Hill Road. Illegal parking in these locations continues to obstruct traffic flow and compromise public safety.

Due to continued non-compliance, the police are forced to divert personnel from already limited operational resources to address this behavior—resources that could otherwise be deployed to manage other critical policing duties.
KPSM calls on all road users to cooperate and comply with traffic regulations to ensure a safe, orderly, and accessible traffic environment in the Maho area.

KPSM Press Release.

PHILIPSBURG:---  The recent confirmation that the Soul Beach Music Festival has officially relocated to Curaçao for its 2026 edition has sparked renewed calls for financial accountability from Member of Parliament (MP) Egbert Doran. While the festival’s departure follows a “homecoming” year in St. Maarten, the MP is raising concerns that the move leaves behind more questions than answers regarding the management of public funds.

MP Doran noted that while he welcomes new initiatives and believes in the potential of the “Orange Economy” to diversify the island’s tourism product, such events must be anchored in proper planning and fiscal transparency to be sustainable. He suggested that the current situation is a direct result of a lack of a clear roadmap.

“We are now in February 2026, yet the 2025 Budget Amendment, the document in which the expenditure for Soul Beach should have been reflected according to the government, has still not come to Parliament,” MP Doran stated. “We are essentially being asked to trust a financial process that remains invisible to the people’s representatives, while the event has already packed up and moved to a neighboring island.”

A primary point of contention for the MP is the status of the Social Economic Council (SER) report. While the report has been completed, the MP pointed out that the Minister has failed to present it to Parliament as promised.

“The Minister promised that a meeting on the SER report would take place as far back as November 2025,” Doran explained. “To date, that report has not been presented to Parliament by the Minister, and no meeting has been called. We are operating in a data vacuum where the only measure of success we have is a verbal assurance that the country ‘made millions.’”

Further adding to the frustration, MP Doran highlighted that when Members of Parliament requested an overview of all advice and documents pertaining to Soul Beach, they were denied access under the guise of “confidentiality.” He noted that this excuse is particularly troubling given that Parliament has a well established confidential route, often involving the Secretariat, through which MPs can legally and securely view sensitive documents to fulfill their oversight duties.

The MP argued that if the government’s over $700,000 investment was as successful as claimed, the data should be readily available for public scrutiny. Specifically, MP Doran is seeking a summarized analysis of:

• Visitor and Hospitality Metrics: A side by side comparison of airport passenger arrivals and hotel occupancy rates for May 2024 versus May 2025 to determine how much “new” traffic was actually generated.
• Fiscal Returns: A clear look at Turnover Tax (TOT) and other government revenues collected during the festival period in 2025 compared to the same period in 2024.

“These checks and balances are what give a true indication of success and can be used to make future events more successful,” the MP stated. “Without this data, we are just spending public funds on a feeling. The festival has moved on to Curaçao, but the responsibility for accountability remains here. We cannot continue to spend public funds on the promise of success without ever seeing the receipts. The people deserve to see the data that justifies the investment.”

PHILIPSBURG:--- The Police Force of Sint Maarten (KPSM) is investigating a serious traffic accident that occurred on the Causeway on February 4th, 2026, just before 2:00 p.m.

Police Dispatch received several calls reporting the accident, which took place shortly after coming off the Causeway bridge on the Union Road side. As a result of the collision, four people sustained injuries. One male victim suffered a head injury with bleeding and was rushed to the Sint Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) for medical treatment.

The Traffic Department responded to the scene and has initiated an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the accident. At this time, the exact cause of the incident remains unclear.

Further information will be provided as it becomes available.

PHILIPSBURG:--- The political theater in St. Maarten reached a new low today, and the audience—the hardworking frontline workers of this country—is tired of the show. Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercelina took to the podium during today’s press briefing, Feb 4th, 2026, offering a masterclass in deflection and bureaucratic word salad while the very people who keep this island safe continue to suffer.
Dr. Mercelina admitted openly that it has been "years of struggle" for these workers. He acknowledged the ongoing disputes with the union and the fire department. Yet, when pressed for solutions, we got nothing but political maneuvering. He talks of "covenants," "placement processes," and "commitment letters that could be transferred into agreement letters." This is not leadership; it is stalling.
The Prime Minister claims he is "careful" because he cannot "a priori agree" with items without a legal basis. But to the firefighter waiting for retroactive payment, or the frontline worker desperate for a finalized function book, these are just excuses. While Mercelina plays politics with words, the real-world effects hit home for families trying to put food on the table. He offers committees and mediators when what is needed is action and a signature.
But the failure doesn't stop at the Prime Minister’s office. It rots right through the heart of Parliament.
We must ask: How does a coalition boasting 9 seats fail to secure a quorum for urgent national business? It is an embarrassment of governance. The Prime Minister points fingers at the opposition for not showing up, but the responsibility to govern lies with the majority. If you have the mandate, show up to work.
We are hearing reports that MP Viren Kotai is attending a religious function overseas. Is this function more critical than the governance of the country? Is it more important than the health of MP Doran? The priorities of this coalition are skewed beyond recognition. When personal engagements trump parliamentary duty, the entire system is broken.
And then there is MP Ludmilla de Weever. Her political stance is as stable as a leaf in the wind. One minute she is staging walkouts with opposition members, disrupting the flow of governance. Then next, she cannot hold the government accountable by voting on the motion. Which is it? She professes undying support for the frontline workers, yet her actions in Parliament do nothing to advance their cause. You cannot claim to support the workers while actively participating in the chaos that delays their relief.
Chair of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams and her colleagues are gambling with the livelihoods of our first responders. They are treating the serious business of governance like a game of musical chairs, where the only losers are the people of St. Maarten.
The frontline workers don't need more "commitment letters" or "mediators." They don't need MPs who walk out one day and shrug their shoulders the next. They need a government that shows up, sits down, and gets the job done. Anything less is a betrayal of the public trust.