Minister, unions agree to
review agreement again
PHILIPSBURG--Civil servants union ABVO and police union NAPB will meet with Justice Minister David Dick before Roland Dongor, Interim Coach of the Police Force of St. Maarten, St. Eustatius and Saba, is sworn in on May 28.
In the meeting, parties will go through the Win-Win Agreement (WWA) to look closely at how the agreement will be interpreted when worked out in practice.
The WWA, signed on March 31, outlines the process of upgrading the Police Force. With the decision to revise the WWA, possible action has been averted after the unions did not receive an answer from Dick on questions posed relating to Dongor’s appointment.
The Minister’s written answer reached the unions on Tuesday, but NAPB president Elvis Mercelina told The Daily Herald the unions were not completely satisfied with it. They agreed to meet with Dick to go through the Win-Win Agreement again and look at its interpretation as it is being worked out.
Mercelina said Dick basically had stated in his letter that the unions should not doubt the agreements made in the WWA and that, according to the legal structure of the police, the rank of Police Chief Commissioner did not exist.
The unions’ concerns were based on information they had received that Dongor had received his uniform with epaulettes of Police Chief Commissioner. This would be against the WWA, the unions said, because the agreement was that Dongor would be appointed in the same rank as the current head of the Police Force, who is a Police Commissioner.
The unions demanded clarification from the Minister at the latest on April 12. Monday, April 12, the unions still had not heard from the Minister and decided to hold an urgent meeting Tuesday morning planning what further steps should be taken.
However, Mercelina said they had received an answer from Dick on Tuesday and the letter had reached the unions a day late because of a miscommunication.
However, Mercelina did not agree with the Minister’s position that the rank of Police Chief Commissioner no longer exists. He said that in the amended legal position of the police organisation, the rank of Police Chief Commissioner had been formalised in 2004.
