WILLEMSTAD – Opposition party PAR says Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas should also be investigated over the continued failure to restart Curaçao’s refinery, arguing that it is unfair to focus an investigation solely on former refinery executive Patrick Newton.
PAR parliamentary leader Quincy Girigorie made the demand after the MFK faction introduced a motion in the Curaçao Parliament calling for an investigation into Newton’s role in the unsuccessful efforts to reopen the refinery.
All parliamentary factions except PAR voted in favor of the motion, according to the party’s August 30 press release.
Girigorie said PAR opposed the motion because it considers its scope too narrow.
According to the PAR leader, Newton’s policies and approach were supported by Pisas during the past several years. Girigorie therefore argues that responsibility for the lack of progress at the refinery cannot be placed exclusively on Newton.
“It is not fair to investigate only Mr. Patrick Newton for the failure to reopen the refinery,” Girigorie stated in the release, arguing that Pisas supported Newton’s management and should consequently also be held politically accountable.
PAR said it would have supported the parliamentary motion if it had explicitly included an investigation into Pisas’ role in the efforts to restart refinery operations.
The party also questioned the timing of the MFK motion, noting that Newton’s contract is expected to expire within approximately two months. PAR believes the parliamentary action makes an extension increasingly unlikely.
Girigorie accused MFK of attempting to create the impression that Newton alone is responsible for the refinery remaining closed. That assertion is PAR’s political position and is not established as a finding by the parliamentary motion itself.
The refinery has remained one of Curaçao’s most important economic and political issues as successive efforts have been made to secure new operators, investors and activities following the end of PDVSA’s operation of the facility.
For PAR, any investigation into why the refinery has not reopened should therefore examine decisions at both the operational and political levels rather than concentrating on a single executive.