All Aruban parliamentarians who went to The Hague received the same information. The Raad van State provided advice regarding the operation of the 70-year-old Kingdom Statute. When discussing the consensus law, they recommended that the appointed minister should first consult the Aruban Parliament before presenting any proposal for a “rijkswet” (Kingdom law) to the Kingdom Ministerial Council.
The Raad van State stated that before presenting a “rijkswet” proposal to the Kingdom Ministerial Council, the government must first present it to the Aruban Parliament.
It is evident that the AVP-Futuro government violated this advice, choosing not to be transparent with the Aruban Parliament and the people. It is a disgrace when we hear members of Parliament talk about the “rijkswet” Hofa in this manner.
It is condemnable that the government, on such a sensitive issue involving our financial autonomy and freedom, did not follow the prescribed procedure nor heed the advice of the Raad van State. The government has proven to be anti-democratic, non-transparent, and does not follow the necessary procedures. At this moment, the Aruban government has a surplus of 500 million Florins, we have been under financial supervision since 2014, and we comply with all financial norms and meet our obligations to the Netherlands to the letter! Furthermore, according to government projections, by 2030, the debt will decrease to 50% despite paying an interest rate of 6.9%.
Now, it is important for the government and its parliamentarians to explain to the people why it is necessary and urgent to agree with the “rijkswet” HOFA, which is nothing more than the surrender of our freedom, the surrender of our financial autonomy, the surrender of our right to self-determination, and the surrender of the Parliament.
The “rijkswet” HOFA takes away the rights of the Parliament: This is the consequence of the “rijkswet” HOFA for our freedom and financial autonomy. The “rijkswet” HOFA gives the Netherlands the authority to decide how Aruba may spend its own funds.
Since when does a bank that lends money have the right to decide how you spend your own income? The “rijkswet” HOFA gives the Netherlands the authority to decide how much money Aruba can borrow!
This law goes much further than just controlling: It will require permission from the Kingdom Ministerial Council (the government of the Netherlands) for every investment, no matter how small or large. Since 1986, Aruba has made its own decisions on investments, but with HOFA, this will change! Any change in the budget will require permission from the Netherlands!
This is something we need to inform the community about because we consider the “rijkswet” HOFA as the surrender of our freedom and autonomy. We regret that within Parliament, there are members who do not feel anything for our freedom. They do not feel proud to live in a free country, they do not feel anything for our unique status. Regardless of how small a nation is, you must always stand firm and strong for your principles and dignity!
The Aruban politician who wants to surrender our freedom and agrees with the “rijkswet” HOFA is not serving the interests of Aruba but rather their own interests or those of others, not the well-being and freedom of our people.
The freedom of a country has no price, and for a few extra dollars, we cannot allow Mike Eman, Gerlien Croes, and Geoffrey Wever to sell our soul and freedom!
Our fight continues because it is the voice of the people; only the will of the people can stop the “rijkswet” HOFA!
Photo Credits : https://diario.aw/categories/noticia/politica/gobierno-avp-futuro-no-a-sigui-conseho-di-raad-van-state-riba-ley-di-consenso-di-reino
