Today, the administration will need to address a number of pressing challenges. Following the incidents in Pikin Saron and Bigi Poika on May 2, a special meeting was called on May 8 to discuss current issues. The agreement with the Oppenheimer bondholders, the IMF process, the concessions in Indigenous territories, the course that cannot be changed, and the conclusion of the investigation into the shooting deaths of two people in Pikin Saron by police bullets are among the topics that assembly members want to know about.
There was no reaction from the government following a bombardment of inquiries from Assembly members. Adjournment of the meeting was made till further notice. Assemblyman Melvin Bouva (NDP) questioned when the administration would address the pressing issues on Tuesday. Thursday will be the date of the adjourned meeting, according to Assembly Chairman Marinus Bee. This meeting has been rescheduled for today at 12:00. The continued discussion of the Casino Act, Lottery Act, and the Supervision & Control of Gambling Act is also on the agenda.
The agreement with the bondholders has drawn criticism from a number of NDP lawmakers, including Rabin Parmessar, Melvin Bouva, Ashwin Adhin, and Stephen Tsang. They claim that by choosing not to pay the interest, the amount owing has gone from US$ 675 million to US$ 880 million, an increase of US$ 205 million. Tsang calculated this. “The total is down to US$ 650 million after the 25% chop. On the initial sum, you only got a discount of US$ 25 million. That 25% is incorrect. The Assembly Member stated that you would not have been in default if you had accepted responsibility for your actions, paid your debts in full, avoided the need for the haircut, and avoided the need to negotiate a VRI.
Tsang claims that instead of paying off, the funds were thrown away on a failing IMF program and a friends and family policy. “With this new agreement, you further transfer responsibility to the following and succeeding governments. Because you are negotiating an interest rate of 5% for the next 2 years for this government, but after that it goes to 8% and if I understand correctly , Suriname must pay a maximum of an additional US$ 695 million as compensation (VRI), at an interest rate of 9%, which must be obtained from future oil revenues. of. This testifies to the deception and incompetence in leadership,” said Tsang.
