PHILIPSBURG--The Committee for Financial Supervision (CFT) informed the Kingdom Council of Ministers that after almost two years of financial oversight in St. Maarten, the budgetary process and financial controls, policies and management leave a lot to be desired.
In a letter dated Wednesday, July 28, Gert Bergsma, Secretary of the CFT briefed the Council of Ministers on the "long and difficult" process to arrive at a budget for 2010 that complies with norms and rules laid out in General Kingdom Measure on Temporary Financial Supervision (AMvRB).
The CFT outlined the number of times it had met with the Executive Council of St. Maarten about the budget situation and the growing concerns it had with the process. Bergsma said despite the "eagerness and good intentions" that government showed towards the advice of the CFT, little has been done in terms of structural improvements or to comply with agreements concerning the 2010 budget.
As such, taking a combination of financial problems, constitutional change, quality of services etc., the CFT anticipates that the complications that surrounded the 2010 budget will more than likely affect the execution of said budget and preparation of the 2011 budget.
Bergsma explained that at the time CFT submitted its half-year report on July 23, 2010, it had not received reaction from St. Maarten about how the recommendations of the CFT would be taken into account for the budget of 2010.
The new information that the committee received from the Executive Council is now being looked at and the CFT hopes to finally attach a positive advice, eight months into the year, to the 2010 budget.
To avoid the situation with the budget from re-occurring, the CFT said it will meet with the Executive Council of St. Maarten and State Secretary of Kingdom Relations to discuss ways to improve the budgetary process and underlying management.
The CFT will also periodically inform the Council of Ministers about the progress of the budget process and financial control and determine if St. Maarten is fully adhering to agreements.
