(De Ware Tijd) PARAMARIBO – President Bouterse wanted to dismiss a number of Ministers some time ago, but he kept them on to complete negotiations with multinationals Iamgold and Newmont. If he had fired the Ministers during the negotiations it would have sent a wrong signal that the government might be rocked by instability and that would have been bad for the proposed investments and the country.
Now that the negotiations are over and the agreements have been adopted by Parliament Bouterse has his hands free to bring order in his team of Ministers. The President shared this information with the press after the swearing-in ceremony of Rabin Parmessar and Steven Relyveld as Minister of Public Works (OW) and Zonal Planning, Land and Forestry Management (RGB) respectively.
The President pointed to the latest IDOS poll that showed discontent among the public and that he needed to take drastic action. Friendship and camaraderie are very important aspects in life, but they have to move in the public’s interest. Now it is up to Parmessar, who has often been praised for his managerial skills, to take charge of the enormously problematic OW. Relyveld’s main task will be to restructure the government’s land policy so that more land becomes available for the government’s housing program. The President and his coalition partners will discuss restructuring of the Ministry to give the Minister a better chance to function than his predecessors
