WILLEMSTAD - The Minister of Finance, Javier Silvania explained that in recent days, there has been a lot of attention on social media and in the press regarding the National Ordinance on the Standardization of Top Incomes in Curaçao (referred to as "LNT"), and speculation has arisen about which government or political party has placed the Curaçao Medical Center (CMC) on the list of government-related entities to which the LNT applies. Silvania says that the issue stems from the problems faced by medical specialists working at the CMC, as they do not want their salaries to be reduced due to the implementation of the LNT on December 21, 2022. The specialists had formed the National Association of Medical Professionals in Employment in Curaçao (LVMPiD).
The standardization of top incomes for government-related entities has been on the agenda for years:
On September 15, 2015, the draft National Ordinance on the Optimization of Government-Related Entities (legislative year 2015-2016-075) was submitted to the Parliament for approval by the then-government. The standardization of top incomes was initially part of this ordinance.
On June 8, 2021, the former PAR-MAN-PIN coalition submitted a Second Amendment Bill to the "First Tranche National Ordinance on Government-Related Entities" (legislative year 2020-2021-187) for approval by the Parliament.
The submission was signed by the former Minister of General Affairs, Mr. Ruggenaath, and the former Minister of Finance, Mr. Gijsbertha. In this Second Amendment Bill, the Curaçao Medical Center is explicitly added to the list of government-related entities (Annex 2 of the national ordinance).
The inclusion of CMC as a government-related entity is stated as follows:
"Part B: Curaçao Medical Center is added to the annex."
The explanation in the Second Amendment Bill regarding the inclusion of CMC as a government-related entity is as follows:
"Reference is made to the Memorandum of Response, Legislative Year 2020-2021-187, page 11. The MAN faction asks why Curaçao Medical Center is not included in one of the annexes accompanying the draft. The government responds to the questions from the MAN faction by stating that CMC will be included in the annex through the amendment bill. The proposed amendment in Part B provides for this and therefore proposes to place CMC in Annex 2. For the sake of clarity, an Amended Draft is submitted to Parliament."
This draft national ordinance has served as the basis for the current National Ordinance on the Standardization of Top Incomes, which came into effect on December 21, 2022, as well as the list of government-related entities included in the annexes, including the CMC.
In the definition of a government-related entity, Article 1, subsection a of the LNT includes the following:
"In this national ordinance and the provisions based on it, the term 'government-related entity' means:
a legal entity established by or pursuant to a national ordinance as referred to in Annex 1 to this national ordinance;
an institution that is subsidized or funded directly by the country of Curaçao for more than fifty percent, as referred to in Annex 2 to this national ordinance. Funding also includes indirect subsidies, including income obtained from government-owned properties;
or a company or foundation as referred to in the Corporate Governance National Ordinance and listed in Annex 2 or 3 of this national ordinance."
The Court of First Instance of Curaçao confirmed in its interim injunction judgment of June 14, 2023, with Case Number: CUR202301471, that the LNT is a government-related entity and that the LNT standards apply to all employees with employment at a government-related entity, among other criteria. As a result, the LNT standards also apply to the employed specialists at the CMC.
The fact that the chairman of LVMPiD and also the chairman of the PAR party, Mr. Berry, disagrees with the provisions established in the current legislation cannot be attributed to the current government.
As mentioned, on June 8, 2021, the PAR-MAN-PIN Cabinet Ruggenaath added the CMC as a government-related entity in Annex 2 of the LNT, thereby subjecting the incomes of the specialists to the income top standardization established in the LNT.
The Pisas II Cabinet has ensured administrative continuity in the legislative process initiated by the previous government, which was agreed upon with the Netherlands as a condition for obtaining liquidity support.