ORANJESTAD – Prime Minister Evelyn Wever-Croes (MEP) lashed out at the opposition party AVP. The Aruban prime minister accuses the eternal rival of being against every decision of her cabinet without presenting alternatives.
According to Wever-Croes, the AVP led by former Prime Minister Mike Eman is inciting the public against her government. Cheap politics does not help Aruba through the double crisis that has hit the island, according to the MEP leader, who challenged her opponents with the call to come up with solutions.
Wever-Croes did so during a press conference in which it was announced that the introduction of VAT will be postponed by one year until January 1, 2024. Instead, the tax on company turnover will be increased from 1 to 1.5%.
Introducing VAT – a rate of at least 16% is thought to further fuel the already high inflation. At the same time, the government must increase revenues to balance the budget from next year. In recent years, the Kingdom Council of Ministers (read: the Netherlands) has allowed Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten deficits, but from 2023, expenditure and income must be balanced again.