Suriname to crack down on corrupt customs officers

(De Ware Tijd) PARAMARIBO – Customs officers who have participated in the fraud with luxury cars which cost the Surinamese government nearly SRD 1 million will be fired by Finance Minister Wonnie Boedhoe. Her orders to the Chief of Customs August van Hamme were clear: “I want the file with the name of the Customs officer who allowed under-billing. He should be fired”. Yesterday, Boedhoe spoke these words at the ceremony to mark the promotion of 21 trainees to the next highest rank. An investigation by DWT shows, however, that this matter is more complex than firing just one individual. More Customs officers turn out to be involved in the fraud. “And they are all big guns”, anonymous insiders claim. Van Hamme says he is pleased with the Minister’s intention to take actions against the bad apples in Customs. “We will cooperate fully and not protect anyone”, he says.