GREAT BAY--Member of Parliament Egbert Doran is calling on government to urgently meet with the business operators at Mullet Bay and provide clarity on their future following the court ruling in favor of Sun Resorts.
Doran said that, based on the information available to him, the affected operators had not yet been formally contacted regarding the consequences of the ruling or whether they would be required to leave the property.
He argued that the responsibility for addressing the situation rests primarily with government because the businesses were allowed to operate at Mullet Bay through licences and rental agreements issued by government.
Doran said he did not expect Sun Resorts to take the lead in communicating with the operators, since their legal and administrative relationship was established with government.
According to Doran, the agreements date back to approximately 2000 and were issued under a previous administration. He said government must now address the position in which those decisions have placed the vendors and determine how their interests will be handled following the ruling.
The MP warned against viewing the matter solely as a dispute over ownership and property rights, stressing that the businesses support employees and families who rely on the area for their livelihoods.
“Don’t just look at who own it. Look at how much families depend on that,” Doran said.
He referred to the employees attached to the various restaurants and other operations at Mullet Bay, including workers employed by Kalatua and Rosie’s, and said the wider economic consequences must form part of government’s response.
Doran referred to scores of employees during the discussion and later estimated that more than 100 people work across the affected operations. He said any decision concerning the vendors would therefore extend beyond the individual business owners and affect workers, households and others who depend on the businesses for income.
The MP also acknowledged during the interview that his family is connected to one of the restaurant and bar operations at Mullet Bay. He nevertheless maintained that the matter requires a broader policy response because several businesses and their employees are affected.
Doran said the operators are now in a difficult position because they were authorized by government to conduct business at the location, but are facing uncertainty following a ruling involving property owned by Sun Resorts.
He called on government to determine the legal and administrative status of the licences and rental agreements, meet directly with the operators and clearly explain what steps will follow.
“All those people have employees. So they in a quagmire and they better fix it,” Doran said.
Doran described the court decision as unusual and questioned whether continued government inaction was contributing to situations in which the judiciary is being called upon to resolve matters that should have been addressed through executive decision-making.
He said that when government fails to make decisions or adequately respond to developing issues, it creates circumstances in which the courts are required to determine the way forward.
Doran has raised the Mullet Bay matter for approximately two years and said he presented motions during the two most recent budget debates seeking action and information. According to him, both motions were rejected.
He questioned why government had not acted sooner to establish what the country, the business operators and the wider community would receive or retain from decisions concerning the property.
The MP also said he previously raised the matter directly with the Prime Minister and was assured that Mullet Bay remained in St. Maarten and was not going anywhere. Doran argued that the court ruling has now created a more urgent and uncertain situation for the people operating and working there.
He called on government to explain to the affected workers and their families what the ruling means for their employment and whether the businesses will be permitted to continue operating, relocated or otherwise accommodated.
Doran said government cannot remain silent while people who entered agreements with the public administration are left without clear direction.
He stressed that he was not suggesting that property rights should be ignored. His position, he said, is that government must accept responsibility for the licences and rental arrangements it previously issued and ensure that the people who relied on those decisions are treated fairly.
The MP is calling for an urgent meeting involving government, the affected operators and other relevant parties to review the agreements, establish the legal position of the vendors and develop a responsible way forward.
He said the outcome must consider the interests of the property owner while also recognizing the employment, income and livelihoods connected to the existing businesses.
Doran warned that continued delay would deepen the uncertainty facing the operators and their workers and could leave more than 100 people and their families without clear answers about their economic future.
