THE HAGUE--"A highly undesirable situation." That is how Dutch Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Piet Hein Donner described the allegations by both Cura�ao Prime Minister Gerrit Schotte and Cura�ao/St. Maarten Central Bank president Emsley Tromp.
Donner promised the Second Chamber's Permanent Committee for Kingdom Relations during a meeting Thursday night that he would look into the facts of the situation in Cura�ao and inform Parliament by way of a letter "as soon as this was possible and sensible."
The minister didn't want to go into details on the clash between the Cura�ao government and Tromp, because a Parliament debate will be held on this issue in the foreseeable future.
Member of Parliament (MP) Eric Lucassen of Party for Freedom PVV, earlier on Thursday, requested a debate on short notice to discuss the latest developments in Cura�ao. PVV received support from Socialist Party (SP) which has also sought an investigation on previous occasions.
"Often we asked for an investigation into corruption on the islands. Every time we were told that it isn't so bad and as a Parliament we just have to accept it. When these kinds of serious allegations are going back and forth, it is high time for an investigation and Cura�ao is a nice start. I say it is time to clean up the mess," said Lucassen.
"This is not just a rumour. It is a serious statement by a very serious person," said MP Ronald van Raak of SP. According to Van Raak, this affects the quality of government and "possibly" Article 43, the guarantee function, of the Kingdom Charter. "That is why I support this request," he said.
Ruling parties, the liberal democratic VVD party and Christian Democratic Party CDA considered a general debate on the Cura�ao situation unnecessary. VVD MP Andr� Bosman: "If we had to request a meeting every time these kinds of allegations were expressed on the islands, we would have to reserve the entire agenda of Parliament." Bosman said it was wise to steer clear of "saying things without having the facts."
"In this stage, you should allow further development. There is no reason for a debate at this time," said MP Bas Jan van Bochove of CDA.
The question is when this debate will be held because there is a long waiting list for debates which need handling before the summer recess in July. MP Martijn van Dam of Labour Party PvdA said in the meeting with Donner Thursday night that he didn't want to wait on this debate for four or five months. He asked Donner to report to Parliament by letter within ten days.
"The Prime Minister of Cura�ao and the Central Bank president are fighting in the street and calling each other names. It is their fight, but this should not be allowed in a decent country and therefore it is inappropriate in the Kingdom," said Van Dam.
"It strikes me that Prime Minister Schotte speaks about the president as if the latter was his subordinate. That fits the way the Cura�ao Government deals with appointments and dismissals, but the Central Bank is a very important institution and it needs to be able to operate independently," said Van Dam.
Donner said he wanted to write his response about the situation in such a way that it wouldn't add to the public discussion between Schotte and Tromp. But, he added: "My impression of the seriousness of the situation is the same as that of Mr. Van Dam. It is highly undesirable that the government and Central Bank engage in discussions in this manner."
Donner said he first needed to get informed on the facts before deciding whether the Cura�ao situation was a matter for the Kingdom. "I will inform the Chamber about the facts and a possible solution as soon as possible."
MP Ineke van Gent of the green left party GroenLinks advised the minister to discuss the matter with Schotte during their next meeting which is scheduled for early next week. Schotte is currently in the Netherlands.
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