MEP faction leader Evelyn Wever-Croes launched a severe critique against Minister Geoffrey Wever following the recent parliamentary debate regarding the intention to increase the salaries of directors of state-owned companies. According to the parliamentarian, the minister left the meeting in a hurry due to the lack of trust and because he was exposed on three crucial points.
According to Wever-Croes, Minister Geoffrey Wever himself requested this meeting with Parliament to discuss the salary cap for directors. However, during the debate, it was demonstrated that the arguments presented by the Minister did not line up with reality.
The First Deception: DWJZ Advice
The first point highlighted by Wever-Croes is that Minister Geoffrey Wever claimed to have advice from the Department of Legislation and Legal Affairs (DWJZ) recommending the application of a favorable policy prior to amending the law (begunstigend beleid).
“We read that advice front to back and back to front. Nowhere in it is there a recommendation for a favorable policy,” declared Wever-Croes. She explained that after a discussion lasting over seven hours, when the Minister was forced to read a portion of the document verbatim, the minister himself had to acknowledge that the content did not support his position.
The Second Deception: Lack of Law Evaluation
The second point of criticism pertains to the lack of a prior evaluation. The Minister maintained that current salaries are not attractive enough for local professionals. However, when his own faction questioned him on how many local professionals actually turned down a position or were harmed by this standard, the Minister’s response was that he had not yet studied or evaluated that aspect.
Wever-Croes pointed out the minister’s attitude when asked for a proper evaluation: “Arrogantly, he answered me that he evaluated what was important to him. But this is not about what is important to him; it is about what is important for Aruba.” The MEP faction leader noted that in the end, both the AVP and FUTURO factions sent the Minister back to conduct the proper evaluations and follow procedures as they should be done.
The Third Deception: Preferential Treatment for Schiphol Group
As a third point, Wever-Croes questioned the preferential treatment given to the directors of Aruba Airport Authority (Triple A) representing Schiphol Group. While the law stipulates a standard cap of 329,000 florins per year for directors of state-owned enterprises, the Government made an exception for Schiphol Group directors, allowing salaries between 1.2 and 1.6 million florins per year.
The parliamentarian questioned why this exception was granted to the Dutch company as of last year, while it is now argued that this law hinders local directors and rules need to be made more flexible for them. “Why was the law accommodated for the Dutch company since last year, and now you put local professionals at a crossroads?” Wever-Croes concluded.
Minister Geoffrey Wever on the verge of receiving a vote of no confidence: he lied to Parliament on three crucial points
