WILLEMSTAD – The Government of Curaçao has issued a statement addressing recent media reports and political comments regarding the February 26 meeting of stakeholders of the Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten (CBCS).
The clarification follows statements made on March 3 in the Parliament of Sint Maarten by Sint Maarten’s Finance Minister Marinka Gumbs. During that session, Gumbs accused Curaçao’s Finance Minister Charles Cooper of failing to honor alleged agreements made with his predecessor, Javier Silvania.
In response, the Curaçao government said it considers it important to provide accurate information to prevent misunderstandings in the media.
According to the statement, Sint Maarten attempted last year to appoint a candidate from the island as chairman of the CBCS Supervisory Board. That effort was unsuccessful because the proposed nomination did not meet the legal requirements governing appointments to the bank’s Board of Supervisory Directors.
Under the statutes of the CBCS, candidates for the supervisory board must first be recommended by the board itself to the finance ministers of Curaçao and Sint Maarten, after which the respective governments decide whether to approve the nomination.
During the February 26 meeting of CBCS stakeholders, attended by Minister Cooper on behalf of the Curaçao government, Minister Gumbs reportedly demanded that Sint Maarten receive the chairmanship of the supervisory board in the next appointment round. She stated that such an arrangement had previously been agreed upon with Silvania.
However, the Curaçao government says there is no written record of such an agreement. Silvania has also reportedly stated that no such arrangement was made during his tenure as minister.
Curaçao argues that granting Sint Maarten the chairmanship would be disproportionate given the ownership structure of the central bank. Curaçao holds roughly 80 percent of the economic interest in the CBCS, while Sint Maarten holds about 20 percent.
According to the government, a situation in which the smaller shareholder would hold the chairmanship while also appointing half of the supervisory board members would be unacceptable. Officials warn that such an imbalance could lead to prolonged political deadlock in the appointment process.
The government also noted that disagreements between the two countries have already resulted in several board members being appointed by the president of the Joint Court of Justice of Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba rather than by the governments themselves.
Curaçao officials say this structural stalemate has hindered the effective functioning of the joint central bank and contributed to political tensions within the Kingdom framework.
Despite the dispute, the government emphasized that the issue concerns governance arrangements and does not affect the stability of the Caribbean guilder or the effectiveness of financial supervision carried out by the CBCS.
The government said it will soon begin consultations with the Curaçao Parliament to discuss possible next steps regarding the governance of the joint central bank.