WILLEMSTAD – Former Minister of Finance, Kenneth Gijsbertha, reacts furiously to the statements and insinuations of the current minister, Javier Silvania, who said that Gijsbertha’s daughter was involved at the time and is therefore partly responsible for the debacle surrounding BearingPoint as supplier of the software and the IT system of the Curaçao Tax Authorities.

Vanessa Gijsbertha had worked in the cabinet of the Minister of Finance in recent years when her father was a minister. In mid-June this year, the current Pisas government took over.

Silvania has started a personal crusade recently against everything that he believes is wrong with the automation of the tax authorities. He does not shy away from any means, such as allowing a camera and a TV reporter to an internal meeting he had with the Inspector of Taxes and BearingPoint. “Shame on you,” Silvania said in this meeting, to Inspector Jamila Isenia as well as employees and management of the consultancy. They have been given an ultimatum to have it in order before the end of the year.

In an interview at a local TV station, the finance minister elaborated on the BearingPoint issue and stated that the daughter of his predecessor, Vanessa Gijsbertha, would have played a special role in this. Firstly, she has worked at BearingPoint in the past and in addition, as a member of the staff team of Minister Gijsbertha’s cabinet, she is said to have been closely involved with the BearingPoint file.

In response to this, the former MAN minister reacts furiously. His daughter ‘never had anything to do’ with the private consultancy because of her work for his cabinet, but also – according to her father – Vanessa Gijsbertha had long ceased to be employed by BearingPoint when the contract for the delivery of software for the Tax and Customs Administration came about. False accusations from Silvania, according to Kenneth Gijsbertha.

He further emphasizes that at the time a special committee was set up and charged with the selection of the supplier of the IT package for the Curaçao tax authorities. His daughter had nothing to do with that recruitment and selection and, according to the former minister, it all went smoothly.

Silvania has serious doubts about the 20 million guilders that has been paid to BearingPoint over a number of years for a product that, in his view, is not satisfactory. Only a part of the income tax returns can be processed digitally by the supplied system, while the vast majority still have to be processed manually. “This is unacceptable,” the minister said.

In addition, every time the IT specialist has to be called in because the software or system does not function as desired and / or needs to be adjusted, it costs extra because BearingPoint does all the work – even if the delivered package does not do what it should do.

Bron: Curacao Chronicle