‘Op de Klippen’ is a weekly news program in Dutch on Mega Hit FM. Once a month, Lt. Governor Edison Rijna joins the program to discuss current affairs. This segment was recorded on Saturday, February 26th, 2022.
Short summary in English:
Ukraine conflict and potential consequences for Bonaire
Rijna points out that as a part of Netherlands, Bonaire’s foreign affairs and defense policies are set in The Hague. However, he has been in touch with national authorities. Rijna recalls the fact that Bonaire is situated close to the shores of Venezuela, a Russian ally.
Energy security
A long standing plan of Bonaire’s energy provider, WEB, to expand capacity and transition to sustainable energy production and delivery was met recently by some competition, of sorts, from the side of The Hague: a separate, The Hague controlled company, BBT, was given the task of securing Bonaire’s future energy supply.
According to Lt. Governor Edison Rijna, any questions as to this issue should be directed to The Hague. Rijna adds that, as Chairman of the joint steering committee on Fuel, he has been aware of talks on the matter, but Rijna states that the ‘BBT-solution’ was the final one brought to the table by The Hague.
Airport BIA
Bonaire’s airport, BIA, is undergoing sweeping changes to its top level management. According to Lt. Governor Rijna, rules of good governance with regard to BIA imply that the local government, as owner of the BIA airport, has no direct involvement in these type of decisions. Rather, the Board of Supervisors oversees and decides on operational leadership at the airport. Asked if in as case like this, where it appears that the three top level officers are stepping down simultaneously, the local government as the shareholder should not request clarification from the Board of Supervisors, Rijna answers that he is aware of the interim-director stepping down but that he has no further knowledge as to any other staff changes being made.
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