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Published On: Sun, Mar 19th, 2023

Pension cuts loom if Ansary does not pay, CBCS-director Jardim says

WILLEMSTAD — The pensions that are insured by ENNIA are at risk. José Jardim, the financial-economic director of the Central Bank of Curacao and St. Maarten (CBCS) said on the last day of Hushang Ansary’s appeal against his 2021-conviction that the CBCs will have to decrease current and future pensions considerably if Ansary and his co-defendants do not repay more than one billion guilders in damages to the insurance company.

Jardim indicated that such a decrease will be significant. He said that the Central Bank is in discussions with the governments of Curacao and St. Maarten to establish up to what point they are prepared “to mitigate the social upheaval that will occur as a result of the decrease.”

But even if the countries are prepared to contribute, it will not be enough to repair all damages. “Without support from the Kingdom, the two countries are unable to put a billion guilders on the table.”

According to the Antilliaans Dagblad, Jardim pointed out that a billion guilders equals 16 percent of the combined gross domestic product of Curacao and St. Maarten. It is also almost half of the combined national budgets of the two countries.

Referring to the 1.2 billion guilders the two countries received in relief from the Kingdom for support measures during the corona pandemic, Jardim said that the actions of Ansary and his codefendants are having an effect that is similar to the havoc create by the pandemic.

ENNIA has more than 40,000 policy holders in Curacao and St. Maarten – around 20 percent of the population.

The court will issue its ruling on the case on June 6.

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