WILLEMSTAD – The urgent request from Fundashon Mariadal on Bonaire to aviation company Sarpa for an emergency permit or permission for ambulance flights has been rejected.

This was announced by Minister Charles Cooper of Transportation, Traffic, and Spatial Planning (VVRP) in a detailed letter.

In the letter addressed to attorney Marie Wijand of HBN Law & Tax, who submitted the request on behalf of Fundashon Mariadal and Sarpa, Cooper emphatically dismissed the request from the table. The minister expressed clear doubts about how the permit was obtained. He emphasized that both Sarpa and Fundashon Mariadal were already aware that the company is not authorized to fly between the islands.

According to Cooper, the current situation is entirely their responsibility. He even called Sarpa’s entering into the agreement malicious. The minister also suggested that the Request for Interest (RFI) and the subsequent tender (TTI) were accompanied by conditions that might be in violation of procurement law. The minister’s letter raises further questions about the proceedings regarding this urgent request and the procedures that have been followed.

Several Bonairian media outlets jointly sent a letter to the Health and Youth Care Inspection this past weekend, seeking clarification on the recent developments concerning the Air Ambulance. The management of Fundashon Mariadal recently decided to collaborate with an airline from Colombia to provide air ambulance services. However, the company appears to lack the permit to fly between the ABC islands.

Bron: Curacao Chronicle