This week the labor unions under which employees are organized at N V ELMAR and Utilities Aruba NV came out with hair-raising accusations against their own members of top management Rojer, Utilities, and Irausquin, Elmar.
They threatened with extreme measures: Suspend Irausquin or we will shut Elmar down.
The expression used by one of the labor union leaders: “SUSPENDE ANTHONY IRAUSQUIN OF TA PONE ELMAR PLAT,” was reminiscent of the events of 1977, but more about that in a bit.
Two things are at play here, their valid concerns, and their futile threats.
The concerns of NV Elmar employees are welcome. We like whistle blowers. They help uncover irregularities. According to the union, they have been complaining for two years about administrative fraud and more and have been ignored. At present they would like to see some action.
They sent an open letter to parliament, the minister, and the prime minister, and shared their outrageous findings. They wanted a profound investigation, a forensic probe, and asked why NV ELMAR has not been audited the way other similar semi-governmental companies were.
So far so good.
Then they threatened.
Their threats are NOT welcome. Labor Unions must not hold their community hostage. You will turn the switch off just because we did not jump on command?
Are you sure that if you hold us by the balls, our hearts and minds will follow?
That is not how it worked here.
In 1977 the labor unions tried that trick and the gezaghebber, the man in charge, called in the Marines from Curacao to flick the switch back on. It was a courageous move. According to our national historian Evert Bonger, the author of August Scur, Dark August, this was part of the island’s struggle for self-determination culminating with Status Aparte in 1986. He says, that an important milestone in that struggle unfolded in the summer of 1977, when Aruba was in the dark for a few days, as the unions switched off the power supply, and announced a general strike. Which was dealt with decisively by the island’s head of the governing council.
Those were the days.
The accusations by the labor unions are profoundly serious and must be investigated profoundly. They talk about nepotism, excessive travel, erratic purchasing, mismanagement of stocks, credit cards abuse, favoritism towards US distribution companies, and discrimination against local suppliers, lack of integrity, no transparency, self-interest, and self-enrichment, deals on the side, inappropriate hiring practices, super luxurious director’s car purchase, the list go on.
The minister is reportedly ‘upset.’
So are we.
