Program maker Guilly Koster interviewed Santokhi prior to his presidency during his visit to the Kwaku Festival in Amsterdam. Koster follows politics in his native country. “It is not going well there economically and there is disappointment, but of course you have to give it time. I am concerned about the ethnic component, which has flared up again in Suriname since Santokhi took office. so far have not succeeded in transforming his party, the VHP, from a traditional Hindu party into a genuine national Surinamese party.”
According to Koster, this has not gone unnoticed by a large group of Afro-Surinamese. “Just like in the past, the staff in the departments of the ministries again consists of the same ethnic group as the relevant minister and political party. I had hoped that he would actually implement those reforms, but to be honest I have not noticed that yet.”
‘Don’t sit on the sidelines’
Santokhi insists in his performances in the Netherlands that he wants strong ties with the entire Surinamese diaspora in the Netherlands. In a speech in the Opera hall in The Hague, prior to the official program, Santokhi called on the diaspora community on Monday evening to “don’t sit on the sidelines, but get involved with Suriname”.
Raisa Ghazi is convinced that during Santokhi’s visit, concrete agreements will be made about encouraging Surinamese-Dutch people to do business in Suriname. During his election campaign, Santokhi promised to work on visa-free travel for the Netherlands.
“It would be nice if in the future it would be possible to work in Suriname with your Dutch nationality. This would make the country even more attractive for entrepreneurs. It would also be good if the Surinamese government were able to make new investments during this visit.” draw from the diaspora,” said Ghazi.
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