THE HAGUE/ORANJESTAD–The Aruba Government plans to introduce an Integrity Chamber along with several other measures to promote good governance.

Aruba Prime Minister Evelyn Wever-Croes announced in a press release on Wednesday that the Aruba Parliament plans to present law proposals next month to regulate the financing of political parties and the introduction of an Integrity Chamber and a Budget Chamber.

Also in the planning is the introduction of an Ombudsman and a new Government Accounts Ordinance (“comptabiliteitsverordening”) which takes into account the advices of the Aruba Board for Financial Supervision CAFT. A law proposal has already been presented in the Aruba Parliament which regulates the screening of candidate Ministers and Ministers.

The process to make the High Councils of State, including the General Audit Chamber and the Advisory Council, more independent from government has started. A committee has been established which should secure that this process is completed by the end of 2018.

“These concrete steps should transform the weak functioning of the constitutional state into a solid basis where good governance is secured. Only through a structural and integral strengthening of the constitutional state can we put the country back on track. It is high time for a new course: the turning-point from bad governance to good governance,” stated Wever-Croes.

She accused the former AVP Government of bad governance, alleged corrupt practices and conflict of interest. Combined with the poor functioning of the Aruba Parliament which did not execute its supervising tasks properly, this led to subversion of democracy.

The financial situation of the Country Aruba deteriorated during the tenure of her predecessor Mike Eman, culminating in a projected 2018 budget deficit of 3.1 per cent (Afl. 275 million) and an increase of the national debt to 93 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP).

Wever-Croes said the CAFT and the Kingdom Council of Ministers knew about the deteriorating financial situation, but opted not to actively intervene. She mentioned “excessive” expenditures and “cosmetic” accounting under the former AVP Government. She said these “cosmetic” allocations included the waiving of the government debts by the Social Insurance Bank Aruba and unrealistic prognoses regarding the reopening of the refinery.

Bron: Daily Herald