Duncan causes
stir in Curaçao
WILLEMSTAD--Antillean Minister Roland Duncan of Home and Constitutional Affairs, (National Alliance) caused a lot of commotion with his comment that 1,000 civil servants will lose their jobs with the elimination of the Central Government and creation of the Country Curaçao.
Civil servant union ABVO called the minister’s statements “very irresponsible,” while Commissioner Zita Jesus-Leito of General Affairs (PAR) emphasised that Curaçao will take over all the civil servants that work on the island.
Duncan made his statements in the interview program “Perspektiva” on Z86 radio.
In a reaction to all the comments that followed, the minister said that he doesn’t understand the commotion.
“I didn’t say that it is going to happen, I only said that there is a possibility. It is now up to everybody to take measures and make sure that it doesn’t happen.
“It is a simple calculation. If you add all the civil servants in Curaçao to the ones working in Curaçao for the Central Government, the total will be between 5,000 and 6,000 people. It is not realistic to assume that the new Country Curaçao is going to continue with so many civil servants.”
According to ABVO, Duncan’s statements are against all the arrangements made and furthermore, they deeply affect the confidence in the government.
“The above-mentioned statements of Duncan have caused turmoil and uncertainty within the island as well as the Antillean civil service. For that reason, the board of ABVO wants to know in return mail, whether the statements of Duncan are based on the truth and also supported by the Central Government.”
Also Commissioner Jesus-Leito is not happy with the statements of the minister.
“I don’t know where he gets this from. In none of the information that I have examined have I seen anything about 1,000 people losing their jobs.
“The fact is that the Country Curaçao’s Government will take over all the civil servants. The Executive Council cannot decide that it will take some and not others.
“Mid August, we will sit down with the Central Government and the different Island Governments to talk about this subject. A lot has to be done still, but the idea is not to send people home.”
As a reaction on Jesus-Leito’s statements in the local media, Duncan said that he will respect her opinion, but that she is recently back in office as commissioner.
“The former BC of Curaçao had a totally different opinion in this matter based on the document ‘Toekomst in Zicht’ (TIZ), which states that the civil servants of the Island Government will get the first choice to work for the new Country Curaçao.
“The new Executive Council now says that it will take over all the civil servants. It is still not clear how it is going to do that.”
Duncan is planning to deliberate with the different commissioners as well as the union involved, on how the future path should be followed. The minister did apologise for possibly having offended people in Curaçao with his statements.
“I only brought forward what we can expect. As a minister, you cannot always talk about positive matters. We cannot close our eyes and act as if nothing is wrong. This matter must be taken care of.”
Acting Prime Minister Ersilia de Lanooy has meanwhile called on the 3,422 federal civil servants to stay calm because the Central Government carries responsibility for its people and will continue to do so. If it turns out a number of people are no longer needed, they will be taken care of, she added.
DP council member Norbert George wants the Executive Council to clarify the statements of Duncan. He also wants the Island Council to discuss this matter in a public meeting.
Observers have pointed out that hundreds of civil servants will reach retirement age between now and December 15, 2008, which would enable the Central and Curaçao Governments to minimise the problem by not replacing them.
