WILLEMSTAD - The Pisas Cabinet spent over half a billion guilders more in 2022 than budgeted, while also receiving less revenue than planned. The most significant overspending occurred at the ministries of Finance, Health, Environment, and Nature under Minister Javier Silvania, as well as the Ministry of Traffic, Transportation, and Spatial Planning under Minister Charles Cooper. This is stated in a report on the 2022 financial statements by the General Audit Chamber.
According to the Audit Chamber, this does not provide a reliable and faithful representation of the country's position as of December 31, 2022, and the results for 2022 as legally required.
Various payments were not executed by the authorized payment authorizers in violation of the law, resulting in a financial regularity error of almost 55 million guilders. The Audit Chamber has also indicated that the financial statements not only show irregularities in regularity but also contain serious fidelity errors, leading to an incomplete understanding of the country's financial status.
The Audit Chamber points out delays in the improvement trajectory of financial management, which should lead to an approving audit opinion on the 2026 financial statements. They urgently recommend that the Parliament request the Council of Ministers and the Minister of Finance to address the bottlenecks, particularly the capacity problems and the lack of decision-making hindering the progress of the roadmap to an approving opinion.
Additionally, the Audit Chamber's report emphasizes the importance of entering into all financial obligations in accordance with applicable laws and regulations and ensuring payments are made by duly authorized officials. It also highlights the need for sanctions against those who do not adhere to these rules.