NA requests urgent coalition
meeting on arrest of Holiday
PHILIPSBURG--National Alliance (NA) leader and parliamentarian William Marlin says he has requested an urgent meeting of the coalition to discuss the arrest of Police Chief Commissioner Derrick Holiday and the issues surrounding it. The meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday.
Shortly after Holiday’s arrest, Marlin said he had called Justice Minister David Dick indicating that they needed to talk. “When Dick came to St. Maarten he met with the National Alliance,” Marlin said.
He told Dick the discussion had to continue and that was why he had requested the coalition meeting. Marlin said he had no details of Holiday’s arrest, but he had also heard about the suspicions against him. “However, there are several things I feel that need clarification.”
The manner in which Holiday was arrested raises eyebrows, particularly if you look at the reason he was arrested, the crimes he is suspected of committing, according to Marlin. “We are talking about the head of police. If there are suspicions of administrative blunders made, we believe he could have been heard in a totally different manner, without sending unmarked cars to his house early in the morning.”
The fact that the media were present was reason for the NA leader to suspect that somebody had had the explicit intention to have the arrest publicised.
Looking at the days leading up to the arrest, Marlin said, the entire matter of removing Holiday and making him available to the Justice Minister so he could help set up St. Maarten’s judicial system, yet arresting him 48 hours later for alleged wrongdoing, raises eyebrows.
NA believes the arrest raises some questions and Marlin said he hopes to receive answers. Marlin regretted that the matter had been made a political football in the “blame game.”
He stressed that Holiday’s arrest was not a discussion in which he as the political faction leader had taken part. “Days before Holiday’s arrest I put a question to the Justice Minister and he said that discussions were taking place with Holiday. The impression I got was that Holiday was in agreement that he would be made available for St. Maarten,” Marlin said.
Regarding Dick’s intention to bring in experts from outside to help the Police Force, Marlin said he personally did not think that bringing in one man or a team from outside would move the justice system to a greater height.
He said the reasons for the state St. Maarten’s Police Force was in were the lack of sufficient police officers, poor equipment and limited finances. These are responsibilities the Central Government had for years, Marlin said. “Beefing up the St. Maarten judicial chain does not mean bringing in somebody from outside to take over.”
