De Ware Tijd
March 4, 1999
KTPI STRUCTURES DISSATISFIED ABOUT TREATMENT COALITION PARTNERS
Structures of the coalition party KTPI, particularly those in the Commewijne District, are not satisfied with the way the government partners are treating each other. Assembly Members of the party had not been invited for important events in Commewijne. Recently, they have also stated that it is useless to keep supporting the government when the party is being ignored like that. In spite of these critical remarks, the KTPI does not intend to leave the government. Representatives from Commewijne expressed their dissatisfaction about this treatment during a party meeting on January 30. As an example, it was mentioned that the project carrier for Marienburg, Michel Sjak Shie, carries out activities without involving the party's leaders and representatives. In an interview, KTPI Assembly Member Cornelis Ardjosemito (who forms an independent fraction) says that, according to the structures, it now turns out that "important posts go to the party's opponents." He explains that in Marienburg, there are coordinators that are not much better that the KTPI's available cadres. Furthermore, Ardjosemito says that, according to those in the know, money made available by the government is used irresponsibly. Other matter also play a role, such as the fact that grounds are not issued in spite of years of preparation. The Assembly Members are not satisfied at all about the infrastructure on both banks of the Commewijne River. The structures believe the party has neither taken positions nor informed its supporters on important issues, such as the judiciary and the uncontrolled exchange rates. Because of this it seemed as if the KTPI did not contribute within the government, and the party was carried away by the bad economic situation. Representatives from Commewijne urged the party's leadership to reconsider the policy toward the KTPI in order to prevent the members from losing faith in the party's leaders. They proposed to appoint new district coordinators. This proposal was accepted during the meeting and carried out immediately. The new coordinators were asked to present new ideas and consolidate and strengthen the party's position in the districts. Ardjosemito has been appointed coordinator for Paramaribo, Robby Dragman is responsible for Nickerie and Coronie, while Ramon Dwarka Panday is charged with Para. Soewarto Moestadja and Sonny Kertoidjojo are the coordinators for Wanica. Johnnymin Djojokasiran and Asmowiredjo are charged with Marowijne and Commewijne, respectively. Ardjosemito believes the gulf between party leaders and supporters is due to the fact that not enough attention has been paid to key persons in the regions, and their problems have not been dealt with. He sees a clear neglect of the field; the KTPI had only been active in the religious filed. But the political work will be picked up again. Board elections were also discussed during the party meeting. The KTPI intends to hold these elections on April 25.
MORE DEVELOPMENT AID PROJECTS IN DANGER
E. Herfkens, the Dutch Minister of Development Cooperation, will not allocate funds for projects in Suriname that are not going smoothly. With the blessing of the Dutch parliament, these funds are drying up. Projects that will suffer because of this include the project for waste processing that was supposed to be finished by the end of last year. On the last day, December 30, the Ministry of Public Works selected a location at Ornamibo. And a new waste processing law, one of the project's conditions, has not been passed yet. To the surprise of Public Works Minister Rudolf Mangal, Herfkens informed him that no funds will be available for this project anymore. According to the Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant, Herfkens also intends to block funds for the sea dike in Nickerie if it is not finished in time. A big problem with the dike is that it will exceed the Nf. 25 million costs originally calculated. The dike in Nickerie has also run into many stagnations. Another big project in danger is the renovation of the runway of the international airport. The implementation of this project, which has reached a decisive phase with invitations to tender, is progressing slowly. According to plan, this project must be finished by the end of this year. Because high-level consultations between Suriname and the Netherlands are not forthcoming, most of the 750 ongoing projects are not financed anymore. Ongoing projects requiring new funds are more and more in danger. And now Herfkens is hardening the Dutch position by scrapping projects that are progressing slowly. The danger is that this new measure may lead to the scrapping of the development cooperation. Most Dutch parliamentarians believe that this is the correct policy toward Suriname. They believe that the Netherlands should apply the same criteria of good government to Suriname that it applies to other countries. This hardening of policy may cause destruction of capital in Suriname. Several projects will be half-finished and useless when they are done. Aid to Suriname has dwindled from Nf. 160 million in 1996 to an estimated Nf. 40 million this year. Herfkens' measure means that this amount can be lower.
GRASSALCO PUT UP FOR ACTION BECAUSE OF US$ 80,000
The state-owned mining company Grassalco will be put up for auction because it cannot pay a debt of US$ 80,000 to the Volks Crediet Bank (VCB). The company's managing director Stanley van Exel is very angry about the "unwillingness" of the bank to restructure the debt. While Grassalco will be put up for auction for only US$ 80,000, the company is allegedly worth US$ 4 million. Van Exel wonders what the VCB's motives are, particularly because, according to him, the bank will not listen to reason. He says that when he took over Grassalco two years ago, the company had many debts. It could not pay its debts, and no one was willing to help out. According to Van Exel, he has managed to make the company healthy again with the efforts of the workers and restart production. Now Grassalco is doing well and, therefore, Van Exel is surprised that the VCB - a state-owned bank at that - is unwilling to restructure the debt. His surprise is even greater given the fact that the loan came out of the Production Investment Fund (PIF) in August 1997, and now threatens to haunt Grassalco. "Why sell a company worth US$ 4 million for US$ 80,000? Why take over the company for such a small sum?" Van Exel asks. He states that he was appointed two years ago to restructure the state-owned company and make it commercially profitable again. And now that he has succeeded through the workers' extraordinary efforts, "they want to sell it." Van Exel says he has restored Grassalco's creditworthiness. Now financiers are willing to help, while hospitals, pharmacies and other suppliers want to do business with the company again. Of the many debtors, only one big one has remained, the VCB.
CARICOM LEADERS SEEK NEW ROADS AFTER 2000
Caricom leaders, who will begin a two-day summit today, must seek new roads for Caricom after the year 2000. It is not expected that all intentions will be clearly formulated during this summit. Therefore, the regular annual meeting will also be of great importance. This meeting will be held in July in Port of Spain, Trinidad. The discussions revolve around establishing a common market and economy, new trade relations with the European Union and Caricom's future after the establishment of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), as well as the establishment of a new Caribbean High Council to replace the current one seated in London, England. A common position on capital punishment also tops the agenda. Most of the government leaders arrived in Suriname yesterday. Four did not arrive, namely Haitian President Rene Preval and the Prime Ministers Percival Patterson (Jamaica), Lester Bird (Antigua & Barbuda) and Hubert Ingram (the Bahamas). At the opening of the Ministerial meeting yesterday, Foreign Minister Errol Snijders said that the time when strangers set the agenda is over. Changing circumstances also affect the Caribbean. Therefore, Caricom must be prepared to deal with changing circumstances. According to Snijders, it is important to consider whether the organizations' goals still meet today's challenges. The Caribbean must become a valuable partner in recreating the Western Hemisphere. According to the Minister, the Caricom is being challenged by the global crisis, which will greatly affect regional economies if it is not dealt with in time. Changing international political and economic circumstances are causing a great political and economic interest in Caricom from outside the region. One of the results of this is that a historic summit will be held in June between the European Union, Caricom and Latin American countries. The USA also predicts a role in the region. According to Snijders, this is the reason why the attitude towards Cuba has been softened.
The Netherlands is blocking the supply of money, threatening the implementation of 70 projects. The reason for this measure is the lack of high-level consultations between Suriname and the Netherlands. President Jules Wijdenbsoch said nearly a year ago, that there will be no Ministerial consultations as long as he has not met with Dutch Prime Minister Wim Kok. Wijdenbosch reiterated this position a few months ago. The main victim of the freezing of relations is Suriname. Most development projects are financed by the Netherlands. Until now, the President's uncompromising attitude has been to Suriname's disadvantage. More and more projects are in danger because of this policy. There will be no money for a new waste dump, to finish the sea dike in Nickerie, to renovate the international airport's runway and for dozens of other projects. As such, talking big to the Netherlands would not have been such a problem if Suriname were able to finance development projects itself. Day by day, we can see that there is no money to keep the economy going in a good way. The exchange rate for the US dollar has been unacceptably high for some time now. Another concerning development is that the state-owned company Grassalco will be put up for auction on March 9. This company is not able to pay the VCB US$ 80,000. According to Grassalco's managing director Stanley van Exel, the company is worth US$ 4 million. Several state-owned companies are in financial difficulties. For some time now, there has been talk of commercializing these companies in a responsible manner. The government must prevent Grassalco's sale. An arrangement must be made with the VCB, which is also state-owned.
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