WILLEMSTAD – Opposition leader Quincy Girigorie (PAR) has sharply criticized the Pisas government for what he calls an “unethical fastball” in the legislative process surrounding the increase of vacation pay for civil servants. Speaking during a public parliamentary meeting on 2 December, Girigorie alleged that the Cabinet attempted to secretly insert salary increases for ministers and Members of Parliament into a bill meant exclusively for civil servants.
According to Girigorie, the issue came to light thanks to the Raad van Advies (Council of Advice), which discovered that the government had modified the draft law after receiving positive advice in September. The original bill submitted in July dealt only with civil servants. After securing the Council’s approval, the government allegedly amended the text to include higher vacation pay for ministers and parliamentarians and submitted this revised version to Parliament in November.
Girigorie noted that this maneuver would have placed opposition MPs in a difficult position. If they voted against the bill to object to the political salary increase, civil servants would also lose their long-awaited vacation pay adjustment. He argued that this approach was a deliberate attempt to force MPs into approving benefits for political officeholders.
The Council of Advice intervened once again on 21 November with an unsolicited advisory letter, warning that the government had violated constitutional procedures and misused the Council’s earlier approval. Girigorie praised the Council for exposing what he described as a “deceptive attempt” by the Cabinet.
“It is serious to see a government trying to pass a fastball on the people by lifting its own vacation pay,” Girigorie said. He emphasized that while he supports the long-overdue increase for civil servants, many pensioners and private-sector workers continue to struggle with the cost of living and receive no comparable benefit.
The PAR leader said the incident raises broader questions about ethics and integrity in Curaçao’s governance. “Is there still room for principle and doing what is correct in our society?” he asked. “Today, thanks to Parliament and the Council of Advice, the correct course was restored and documented for history.”