MP De Weever: TelEm support needed to avoid greater financial burden, writes to Minister Gumbs

GREAT BAY--Member of Parliament Ludmila de Weever has urged the Government of Sint Maarten to urgently finalize a XCG 5 million guarantee for TELEM, warning that failure to act would create an even greater financial burden on the country. The MP has written to Finance Minister Marinka Gumbs seeking answers on the concerning situation.

“Should government fail to assist TELEM, the burden of financing the redundant employees at XCG 500,000 per month (for 74 employees) will most certainly be increased by the remaining employees’ salaries. A rough estimate of the salaries of the remaining 53 employees could surpass XCG 300,000 per month. Is the government prepared to explain to the former and current employees of TELEM that they will no longer be paid? The burden will then become the government’s which undoubtedly will exceed the costs of a guarantee letter in the amount of XCG 5 million,” MP de Weever cautioned.

In her letter to Minister of Finance Marinka Gumbs, de Weever expressed “serious concerns regarding the financial health of our national telecommunications provider TELEM and the level of support it requires from government to stabilize operations.” She pointed to reports confirming the need for a government guarantee of XCG 5 million, alongside warnings from the St. Maarten Communications Union (SMCU) about TELEM’s fragile financial position due to increased competition from new providers such as Starlink and the consequences of years of mismanagement and lack of oversight.

The MP submitted six direct questions to the Minister of Finance:

• “Financial Injection: Is the government proceeding with a financial injection into TELEM and if so when will this be made available? According to my understanding, without this financial injection, the employees who were made redundant will not receive their agreed upon salaries from Vidanova. This amount is approximately XCG 500,000 per month.”

• “Amount and Structure: If the financial injection is via the means of a guarantee letter from government to the lenders, what is the amount and what activities is this specified for (ie detailed breakdown of the value to be used for what exact purpose)?”

• “Safeguards: What oversight and accountability measures will be attached to this support to ensure proper use of public funds and safeguard long term sustainability of TELEM? Specifically, how will government measure deliverables from management and the supervisory board of directors once the financial injection is approved.”

• “Conditions: As part of the conditions of receiving the financial injection, will TELEM be required to source labor/technicians locally first before inquiring abroad? This is also a concern from the SMCU as TELEM used foreign labor after the restructuring in 2023 which resulted in underutilization of a local workforce (including technicians made redundant).”

• “What is the government’s position on whether the country should continue to maintain its own telecommunication network? This is especially valid given that the Minister of TEATT authorized Starlink as another telecommunication provider.”

• “Please provide a copy of the Quick Scan and the most recent audited financial statements of TELEM which can be confidentially viewed if necessary.”

The letter was also copied to Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercelina, Minister of TEATT Grisha Heyliger-Marten, and Secretary General Cassandra Janssen.

De Weever concluded that “The people of Sint Maarten depend on TELEM as a national asset, and it is therefore essential that Parliament be fully informed of government’s plans, commitments and safeguards regarding this matter.”

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