WILLEMSTAD - The new pier and boardwalk behind Scuba Lodge is larger and more extensive than the permit allows. This is according to Minister Charles Cooper of Traffic, Transport and Spatial Planning.
Business owners Bas Filippini has not adhered to the permit conditions, according to the minister. As far as Cooper is concerned, the owner must tear down the construction so that the permit requirements are met again.
In addition to being larger and more extensive, the business owner has used, among other things, deposit techniques that were not allowed. This may have caused damage to the seabed and what lives there.
In the Dutch morning newspaper, Filippini acknowledges that the construction is larger than permitted and that he intends to repair it. Work on the breakwater has been stopped immediately, he said.
Complaint
Cooper has since filed a complaint with the Public Prosecution Service via a letter to the Attorney General, Tom Maan. In it, the minister mentions the Filippini's behavior as theft of domain land, the territorial sea. Cooper wants the business owner to be punished for his actions, because otherwise the minister is afraid that other investors will abuse the situation and also ignore the government.
In addition, Cooper reminds the Attorney General of the penalty that stands for violation of the law in this regard: a maximum of four years in prison or a fine of one million guilders.