St. Maarten, are we still being taken for a ride? Fifteen years of garbage tender controversies!

Dear Editor,

At what point do we finally say enough is enough? For approximately 15 years, garbage collection tenders in St. Maarten have been surrounded by controversy. Different governments have come and gone, different ministers have taken responsibility, and different tendering methods have been introduced. Yet somehow, we keep ending up in the same place.

We have witnessed governments fall over garbage tenders. We have seen ministers face political pressure and somehow survive votes of no confidence. And today, here we are again, potentially preparing ourselves for another episode of the same political circus. Have we learned absolutely nothing?

Last week, the Minister informed the public that the garbage tender results were not yet final. Apparently, there is still some shooshoo happening within our community. But something interesting is happening while the public waits for those official results.

Garbage trucks are arriving on the island left, right and centre! Now, let me ask a simple question. Who in their right mind invests hundreds of thousands of dollars in specialized garbage trucks without having some level of confidence that they will actually be awarded a contract?

Let's not insult the intelligence of the people of St. Maarten. We are not talking about buying a school bus that you can eventually convert into a party bus if business doesn't work out. We are talking about garbage trucks! Specialized equipment purchased for a very specific purpose. You don't make that kind of investment simply because you feel lucky.

So what exactly is going on? Did some prospective haulers receive information ahead of the official announcement? Were assurances given? Did somebody get a little too comfortable sharing information that should have remained confidential?

Let me be clear: the arrival of these trucks does not prove that anyone received inside information. But it certainly raises questions that government should be willing to answer. And while we are busy looking at the haulers, perhaps we should spend a little more time examining the people designing and awarding these contracts.

Because government has a responsibility too!

Government cannot continue inviting local entrepreneurs to participate in public tenders, encouraging them to make massive investments, and then wash its hands of the consequences when those investments become financial burdens. Let's break this down and look at what it actually takes to operate a garbage collection business.

A garbage hauler purchases trucks, sometimes financing them through a bank. He hires employees and pays salaries, fuel, maintenance, insurance, SZV contributions and taxes. He has operational expenses whether garbage is being collected or not. And what does he receive in return? A three-year contract!

Three years to recover a substantial investment, operate a business, pay off financing and hopefully make a profit. Then what? Another tender, another political discussion and another opportunity for someone else to get a piece of the pie. What happens to the trucks, the employees and the outstanding loans?

Does anyone in government actually sit down and calculate the long-term consequences of the policies they introduce? Or is the objective simply to award contracts and move on, leaving businesses to deal with the financial consequences of decisions made elsewhere?

Let's talk about something else that we seem to have forgotten. There was a time when approximately five established haulers were responsible for keeping St. Maarten clean: Bunchie, Freed of Meadowlands, Boykie of Clean St. Maarten, James Richardson of All Waste in Place, and Reggie Leonard of Leonard Enterprise.

These were established local businesses. St. Maarten was not perfect, but these operators had experience, equipment and an understanding of the responsibility that came with keeping our island clean. Then came the approach of opening the playing field to more and more small haulers, with the argument that everyone should have an opportunity.

And there is absolutely nothing wrong with giving local entrepreneurs opportunities. But opportunity without sustainability is not empowerment. It is a recipe for financial disaster. Our politicians need to understand that creating opportunities does not mean dividing every industry into as many pieces as possible.

When we think about tables and chairs, we think about Holiday Family. When we think about sound engineering and lighting, we think about Sound 2000. When we think about septic services, we think about Lambert and Speedy.

Why is it that in certain industries we understand the value of established, experienced businesses, but when it comes to garbage collection, we suddenly seem to believe that the best solution is to have everybody fighting for a contract? Are we developing industries or destroying them through political decision-making?

And let's not forget the consequences of all this. When garbage is not collected on time, when trucks break down and when the island starts looking like a dumping ground, who gets blamed? The haulers! But who created the system in which these businesses must operate? Government!

We cannot continue to blame the people on the ground while ignoring the policies coming from the top. A garbage hauler cannot operate on political promises. He cannot pay his fuel supplier with a handshake, settle his SZV obligations with good intentions or walk into the bank and explain that his government contract might be renewed because he has been a loyal supporter.

Business doesn't work that way, and government shouldn't work that way either. If government wants professional garbage collection services, it must create professional tendering arrangements. That means realistic contract periods, proper financial planning, clear performance standards, transparent evaluation criteria and a long-term strategy for the industry.

It also means ensuring that the tender process is fair and that nobody receives preferential treatment. The public should not be left guessing who won a contract based on how many garbage trucks are suddenly arriving on the island. We deserve answers, and government should understand why these questions are being asked.

Who was awarded the contracts? What were the evaluation criteria? How were the bids assessed? Were all bidders treated equally? And why, while the Minister says the results are not final, are we witnessing what appears to be a rush to bring specialized equipment to the island?

These are not unreasonable questions. They are questions that taxpayers have every right to ask, particularly when the decisions being made involve public money, the livelihoods of local entrepreneurs and a service that every household and business depends on.

Fifteen years! Fifteen years of controversy over something as basic as collecting garbage. You would think by now we would have developed a system that works, a system that protects taxpayers, gives legitimate businesses a fair opportunity and, most importantly, keeps our island clean.

Instead, we seem to be preparing for another round of political shooshoo. St. Maarten cannot afford another garbage tender becoming a political crisis. Our island cannot afford another failed approach, and our local entrepreneurs certainly cannot afford to be used as pawns in a political game.

It is time for government to stop treating garbage collection as another contract to distribute and start treating it as the essential public service it is. The policies governing this industry should be designed to ensure reliable collection, fair competition, financial sustainability and accountability, regardless of which political party holds office.

Because at the end of the day, the garbage doesn't care which political party is in government. It doesn't care who supported whom during an election, and it certainly doesn't care who received a contract. It just keeps piling up.

Perhaps the real garbage problem in St. Maarten isn't just what we see on our streets. Perhaps it is the way we continue to manage the system behind it.

Fifteen years later, St. Maarten deserves better. Much better.

(𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧 𝐋𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫 - 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦’𝘴 𝘛𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘶𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘶𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴. 𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳. 𝘐𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳’𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘦 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘬𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘴. 𝘞𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘵 𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘺, 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦.)

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