Member of the Second Chamber of Parliament in the Netherlands Jorien Wuite and four of her colleagues (see related story) questioned caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte about his role as chairman of the Kingdom Council RMR in halting – earlier approved – liquidity support for St. Maarten. They want to know to what extent he was involved in the latter and whether State Secretary of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Raymond Knops had not broken the rules of procedure for the Dutch Cabinet and – presumably by extension – the RMR that a state secretary or minister may never act against a decision of the council.
In addition, the elected representatives asked Rutte to confirm whether reasons given for withholding the NAf. 39 million loan indeed had nothing do to with conditions set for such. This is considered unusual and even dubious by many on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
While the interest shown by legislators in The Hague was obviously welcome, there is no time left to await any possible result. Government and businesses alike will run into big financial trouble if the funds are not transferred soon, directly affecting the – already reduced – income for thousands of both public- and private-sector workers as well as others.
Doing enough in the eyes of advisor Royal Schiphol Group (RSG) to restore proper corporate governance at Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) at this point appears the only way to get the money quickly. Not only that, but continuation of the long-awaited US $100 million terminal reconstruction project with financing half each from the Dutch-sponsored Trust Fund and the European Investment Bank (EIB) depends on it too.
It seems clear that, certainly under the current dire socioeconomic circumstances, interests of individuals or groups cannot be allowed to prevail over the immediate basic needs of practically an entire community.
