WILLEMSTAD - Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas will visit the Expo 2020 in Dubai this weekend. This of course is not a bad thing but there has been great commotion about the costs of the trip – more than 70,000 guilders.
The well-known Curaçao journalist Mariano Heyden quoted in great detail from leaked internal documents from the Ministry of General Affairs on Saturday. It concerns an application submitted to the ministry for the costs to be incurred for the journey of Pisas and his two traveling companions, head of cabinet Jurick Comenentia and policy officer Roxienne Albertina.
The prime minister left for the Netherlands on Sunday and will return to Willemstad on April 3. From March 26 to 31, he will be in Dubai where he will stay at the Jumeirah Emirates hotel. The cheapest room costs $1,200 per night. In total, the journey of Pisas and his collaborators costs 71,284 guilders. Finance Minister Javier Silvania has signed the agreement.
The travel costs of the 7-strong delegation, led by Minister Ruisandro Cijntje of Economic Development, also visiting the Dubai Expo, are unknown. There are serious doubts about the usefulness of the visit to the United Arab Emirates. Expo 2020 is intended for companies that are looking for buyers in the Gulf region for their sustainable innovations.