The Bottom, Saba- The 3-day celebration on occasion of Saba Day was kicked off yesterday with the official opening, which took place in Windward side.

Sabans and visitors from neighboring and sister islands first gathered at the St. Paul Conversion Church for an early ecumenical service with Pastor Liburd and Father Zibi, followed by the official program with the raising of the flag, speeches, performances, music and dance on the grounds of the Harry L. Johnson Museum.

Commissioner Bruce Zagers in his speech addressed the positive things that have happened since Saba became a Public Entity in 2010 and looked back at the hardships before that when the island was still part of the Netherlands Antilles.

“Back then a budget was basically a wish list and it was a struggle from day to day trying to find creative ways to keep the government and the basic services operational. Struggling to pay bills, salaries, organizing medical evacuations, ensuring that the hospital pharmacy was stocked and that our teachers and schools were equipped with the tools to educate our children.”

Positive adancements
Today, said Zagers, Saba didn’t face any of these problems and positive advancements have been made in almost every sector, not only in government but also in the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the community.

According to the Commissioner, things are not perfect as yet and there is certainly room for improvement, said Zagers, who mentioned the need to reduce the cost of living and to tackle poverty, both of which are a responsibility of the Dutch Government. Zagers said that Commissioner Rolando Wilson and he would be traveling to the Netherlands next week for meetings with the Dutch ministries.