The PPA faction did not limit its questions to Parliament. The party has now formalized its concerns in an official letter directed to the Council of Ministers, requesting documentation and legal clarification regarding the 2.1 million florin contract financed through the Aruba Tourism Authority (ATA).
During his weekly press conference, faction leader Eduard Pieters explained that the letter is neither a political attack nor an attempt to paralyze a waste collection project. “The letter is an opportunity for the Government to prove that the process followed the law. If everything is correct, show the documents.”
According to Pieters, the letter is based on four legal points that, according to PPA, have not yet been clarified during the public parliamentary meeting called by PPA.
Four points PPA wants clarified
*The first point concerns the use of Article 20 of the National Ordinance on the Institution of the Aruba Tourism Authority (Landsverordening Instelling Aruba Tourism Authority). According to Pieters, if the minister gave a formal instruction to the ATA to finance the project, Parliament has the right to receive the official document confirming that decision.
*The second point addresses Article 21, which, according to PPA, obligates the government and the ATA to follow the public tendering procedure (destaho publico) for contracts of this magnitude. Pieters stated that to this day, no evidence of a complete public tendering process has been presented to Parliament.
*Third, PPA questions whether the project truly falls under the legal objective of the ATA, as defined in Article 2 of the National Ordinance. According to Pieters, the ATA was created to strengthen Aruba’s tourism product, not to assume responsibilities traditionally handled by another ministry or public entity.
*Finally, the letter also raises concerns regarding the principle of good governance (bon gobernacion), arguing that transparency and equal opportunity for different companies are essential elements in the management of public funds.
“We are not asking for favors” Pieters emphasized that Parliament is not requesting any privileges. “We are not asking for favors. We are asking for the documents that Parliament has the constitutional right to receive.”
According to the MP, the public meeting resulted in many verbal explanations, but not in documentary evidence confirming that the process followed the legal framework.
PPA wants to see, among other things, documentation related to the public tender, the ministerial decree (ministeriele beschikking), and any other administrative acts serving as the basis for the decisions made.
The Government has the opportunity to correct Contrary to what some political statements might imply, Pieters said that the main objective of the letter is not to create confrontation, but to allow the Government to formally respond and take steps to correct potential errors.
According to Pieters, if the documents show that all procedures were followed, the legal issue will automatically be clarified. But if the legal basis cannot be presented, the Government must explain how it will remedy or correct the situation.
“We are giving the Government an opportunity to fix any error, if an error was indeed committed.” Pieters added that PPA is not against a cleaner Aruba or investment in waste collection. The party simply insists that any project, no matter how positive the goal, must respect the laws protecting transparency and good governance. “The end does not justify the means.”
PPA confirmed that it will analyze the Government’s official response before determining the next parliamentary and legal step in this case.