WILLEMSTAD - The MAN parliamentary faction (PIN) has issued a strong response to a recent statement by Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas, accusing him of overstepping constitutional boundaries and interfering in the work of Parliament. In a press release titled “Open Letter to the Prime Minister,” MAN members Suzy Römer, Yaël Plet, and Alvin M. Daal argue that the Prime Minister’s latest declaration represents a “highly irregular constitutional novelty” and that Pisas is “judging Parliament’s work as if it were under his authority.”
According to the faction, the Prime Minister is making a series of serious errors by attempting to involve himself in parliamentary procedures. “It is not the role of a minister—nor the Prime Minister—to interfere with how Parliament enforces its own Rules of Order,” the statement said. “That is an inversion of power: Parliament is supposed to control the government, not the other way around.”
Defense of Parliamentary Independence
The MAN faction stressed that Parliament’s work and the role of its Chairperson are fundamental to safeguarding democracy, ensuring that ministers remain accountable to the people through their representatives.
“It is only in totalitarian regimes that leaders believe they possess absolute power to decide, act, and undo decisions without accountability to the people,” the letter stated.
The faction criticized the government for failing to appear before Parliament for more than three weeks following what it called a “shameful incident and corruption accusations” involving the Minister of Finance and the Receiver of Taxes. “The government handed a governing matter to a party board to hide the truth,” they wrote, adding that the Receiver had not yet received written authorization to formally return his state medal in Parliament.
Alleged Contradictions and Overreach
The letter also challenges the Prime Minister’s reasoning, calling his analysis “incomplete.” The MAN members argue that Pisas failed to verify whether the Chairperson of Parliament had consulted the meeting initiators before postponing or canceling the October 17 session. They claim he also omitted how many meetings were postponed, canceled, or rescheduled.
They questioned how the Prime Minister obtained and used internal parliamentary documents in his analysis. “By what legal instrument did the Prime Minister gain access to Parliament’s archives for his so-called investigation? Where is the formal request authorizing Parliament to share that information?” the statement asked.
The faction further questioned under what law the Prime Minister based his supposed authority to judge the Speaker’s actions. “In a state governed by the rule of law, all authority must be anchored in legislation,” they wrote.
Accusations of Undermining Democracy
The MAN faction also pointed to a contradiction between the Prime Minister and the Speaker of Parliament. While the Speaker had reportedly canceled the meeting and advised initiators to call a new session under a different agenda, Pisas publicly stated that he had “promised the Speaker” to appear in Parliament alongside the Receiver to answer questions.
The faction demanded to know when the postponed meeting—requested by MAN and other factions—would finally take place, stressing that the people still have no clear answers about the corruption allegations and the resignation of the Minister of Finance. “Parliament was never formally informed why the minister stepped down,” they added.
“An Armed Assault on Parliamentary Democracy”
The statement ends with a sharp rebuke:
“It is sad to see the Prime Minister, who should know better, trample on the constitutional rights of Parliament’s members and set a bad example for young people by persisting in wrongful actions. By acting as he did on a Sunday, the Prime Minister committed an armed assault on parliamentary democracy.”
According to MAN, Pisas’s behavior “humiliates the country” and undermines the authority of both constitutional law experts and the Speaker of Parliament, pushing Curaçao down “the dangerous path of totalitarian dictatorship.”
