Attorney General (AG) of Aruba Bote ter Stege did not mince any words (see related story) as he addressed allegations made especially during the recent election campaign there that certain actions by the prosecution were politically motivated. Two former ministers of AVP and POR are suspected of corruption.
Media on the island apparently went as far as to claim the AG was having an affair with caretaker Prime Minister and current “informateur” exploring the forming of a new government Evelyn Wever-Croes (MEP). In his opinion, that cannot be freedom of the press and has nothing to do with journalism.
Accusing law enforcement of witch hunts after politicians is regrettably commonplace in the Dutch Caribbean, including St. Maarten. That these authorities usually come from the Netherlands is used as argument to suggest they have some type of hidden colonial agenda.
The same is done with judges, be it less openly. They are all supposedly conspiring to disqualify local leadership so The Hague can take over.
Excuse the expression, but what a load of bull. Truth be told, the prosecutors and courts are doing society a great service by weeding out the bad apples that threaten to spoil the proverbial bunch.
And while these cases sometimes take relatively long to reach trial, as pointed out in this column before, they tend to involve complicated and sensitive investigations into alleged irregularities that must be carried out in a thorough manner, precisely because they regard public figures often democratically voted into office. However, the fact remains that more than half a dozen Members of Parliament (MPs) in Philipsburg were indicted since county status was attained per 10-10-10.
For that, they have only themselves to blame.
