According to a ministerial decree dated July 21, 2026, signed by the minister responsible for Education, Sports, Youth, and Innovation (during the AVP-Futuro cabinet period), a service contract (overeenkomst van opdracht) was awarded without public announcement (onderhandse aanbesteding) to the company POPA Psychologie- en Onderwijspraktijk Aruba, represented by its director, Mrs. Raymicheline Manuela Jurienne (Misha) Raymond, an active politician of the RAIZ party in the last election.
This decision, based on an approval by the Council of Ministers on July 14, 2026, enters into force on August 1, 2026, and will serve for the entire duration of the current cabinet.
The official document stipulates that the expenses are for strategic support in the field of youth for the Bureau of the Ministry of Education, Sports, and Youth, but shouldn’t this be a policy that actually falls under the Minister of Social Affairs and Health?
- Monthly remuneration: An estimated sum of Afl. 13,423 per month; this sum includes BBO, B-AZV, and B-AVP.
- Overtime (Overuren): In case of a need for work or additional hours, a rate of Afl. 155 per hour is paid, also inclusive of BBO, B-AZV, and B-AVP.
These expenses are charged to budget position number 16770001.4361 of the Ministry of Education and Sports.
Who is Misha Raymond?
Mrs. Misha Raymond is a well-known child and youth psychologist and an active politician from the recent election who has not yet retired from politics in Aruba. She was a member of the Parliament of Aruba for the RAIZ party from September 2021 until the last election, a period during which she was also faction leader.
Still fresh in memory is the pact that politician Misha Raymond made together with Gerlien Croes (independent in parliament), AVP, MAS, and Acción 21, a pact to oust parliament president Edgar Vrolijk while she was part of the MEP-RAIZ government. Is she perhaps being rewarded today for betraying her own government because she made a pact with the opposition and achieved her goal? This is the professional that Aruba will pay the sum of Afl. 13,423 per month, with money from your wallet, having betrayed her voters and the people of Aruba.
To be able to award this assignment directly to the practice of the politician Mrs. Raymond, the government applied an exception under articles 10 and 11 of the Tendering Ordinance (Aanbestedingsverordening). The government argues that the work requires specific knowledge and that, due to the particular nature of the tasks, there must be mutual trust between the minister and the expert in question to guarantee a lasting and effective collaboration.
The decision was sent for awareness to the Ministers, the General Audit Chamber of Aruba (Algemene Rekenkamer Aruba), the Tax Department (Direccion di Impuesto), the Department of Finance (Direccion di Finansa), CAC, and Bureau Voorlichting. Alongside this, the Council of Ministers supports such a gesture, but why perhaps do they support this?
