Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labour VSA Richinel Brug’s rejection of a nomination for director of Social and Health Insurances SZV (see Monday newspaper) raises questions. He cited serious irregularities in the recruitment process that appeared to favour a particular candidate.
Key concerns included scoring anomalies, insufficient expertise on the nominating committee, questionable handling of candidates, breaches of confidentiality and non-compliance with statutory requirements. Several applicants also submitted formal and informal complaints, reinforcing these concerns.
However, to restore public trust and ensure a transparent, merit-based process, the same Supervisory Council which was supposed to guide that apparently faulty process has now been instructed to restart the recruitment with support of an independent firm. All procedures must strictly adhere to statutory and governance standards.
But if that was not the case before, who is responsible? The minister’s release mentioned that the renewed process is expected to conclude within three to four months following the installation of additional council members.
In other words, an incomplete Supervisory Council failed in its oversight task regarding this matter and the answer is to do it all over. Why, how and by whom what candidate was allegedly favoured remains up in the air.
Also seeing recent developments involving a vacant function at the Central Bank of Curaçao and St. Maarten (CBCS), it might be wise to consult the Corporate Governance Council (CGC) at an early stage whenever even considering such appointments in the future.
