WILLEMSTAD - The Public Prosecution Service (OM) is reportedly conducting a judicial inquiry into the 'tax forgiveness scandal' centered around Minister of Finance Javier Silvania of the MFK party. A closed-door hearing took place yesterday, with the decision to continue the case in four weeks. The OM has not released any details regarding the content of the session.
It is believed that the session dealt with a request from the Dos Bui pa Kòrsou Foundation, represented by a local citizen journalist. The foundation is attempting to compel the OM to criminally prosecute Silvania through the Court of Justice. This effort follows a complaint from April 2024, in which Dos Bui pa Kòrsou accuses the minister of issuing unlawful instructions to the Receiver of Curaçao, resulting in the inability to collect tax assessments from 2017 and earlier.
Complaint
The foundation alleges that the minister acted in violation of both constitutional and criminal law by announcing a policy change via social media. On January 28, 2023, Silvania posted on Facebook that old tax assessments, including property taxes (OZB), would no longer be collected.
The policy change was justified by the size of the collection backlog and a report from the OECD, which suggested that the likelihood of successful tax collection diminishes significantly after two years.
However, the foundation argues that this reasoning is flawed and that the measures have caused substantial financial damage to Curaçao, potentially amounting to hundreds of millions of guilders. Dos Bui pa Kòrsou also fears that this policy sets a dangerous precedent, allowing future ministers to forgive taxes at their discretion.
Article 15 Procedure
Due to the lack of response from the OM regarding the complaint, Dos Bui pa Kòrsou has invoked the Article 15 procedure of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which allows an interested party to file a formal complaint with the Court of Justice to force prosecution.
The OM, led by Attorney General Guillano Schoop, has reportedly initiated a fact-finding investigation following a recent report from the Social and Economic Council (SER). The SER concluded that there is no legal basis for the Minister of Finance to enact tax forgiveness in this manner.
Political Consequences
The tax forgiveness scandal has also led to political tensions. A Central Committee meeting on the issue was suspended for fifteen months and ultimately contributed to the breakup of the MFK/PNP governing coalition last month.
PNP parliamentarians raised critical questions about the legality of Silvania’s actions, which the MFK faction deemed inappropriate. The Pisas cabinet remains in power with the support of the one-member factions KEM and independent MP Zita Jesus-Leito.
A public session of Parliament, in which a motion of censure or no-confidence against Silvania could be introduced, has yet to be called by the MFK parliamentary chair.
The OM will decide whether to pursue criminal prosecution if the fact-finding investigation uncovers grounds for suspicion of criminal acts.
