Curaçao Parliament votes for an own Central Bank

June 10, 2011 6:50 AM

A motion calling for Curaçao to have its own Central Bank rather than having to share one with St. Maarten was adopted with eleven votes for and none against by Parliament yesterday evening, while a motion of no-confidence against Finance Minister George "Jorge" Jamaloodin (MFK) in connection with the controversy involving Central Bank director Emsley Tromp and members of the Schotte cabinet was rejected by eleven votes to eight.

The latter was introduced by opposition party PAR, which requested the public meeting. Leader of the coalition party PS Helmin Wiels had stated earlier that Jamaloodin should go and even called him a clown, but he did not follow through by voting for the motion against the minister.

In the end, the other two opposition factions PNP and FOL – with one seat each –abstained, so the 11 votes against of the MFK/PS/MAN coalition were more than enough to overrule PAR's eight votes in favour.

Wiels also had been very critical of Prime Minister Gerrit Schotte (MFK) for agreeing to have the Kingdom Council of Ministers instruct an independent mixed Curaçao/Dutch committee to investigate the integrity of the Central Bank and, as it turned out, that of the Curaçao Government. Schotte told the meeting a letter would be sent to The Hague saying that decision cannot be executed based on the statutes of the joint Central Bank of Curaçao and St. Maarten.

Instead, the bank's Supervisory Board, for which the final swearing-in ceremony takes place Friday, will be asked to have Curaçao's Audit Chamber conduct an investigation, as was requested already in a motion adopted unanimously by Parliament a week ago. The Kingdom Government's decision in any case also had mentioned involving Curaçao's Audit Chamber.

Somewhat surprising was the presentation by the coalition of a motion calling for Curaçao to have its own Central Bank, after St. Maarten's Finance Minister Hiro Shigemoto (MFK) had called recently for an independently functioning branch in Phillipsburg. This motion was carried by 11 votes in favour and none against, with all opposition members abstaining.

9 June 2011

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