Oranjestad- The (interim) Government of St. Eustatius today signed a contract with CTC-construction for a project which will see various cemetery walls and burial grounds restored. The project was already mentioned by acting Government Commissioner Stegers, during his interview on Radio Statia last Sunday.

The project, while positive in itself, has also led to raised eyebrows and cynical remarks on the island. Some more vocal Statians expressed, especially on the various Social Media platforms, disbelief and even dismay about the fact that the restoration of cemetery is considered a priority by the interim government.

“How they give more attention to the deceased than to those living?”, was one comment heard. Various people expressed the opinion that poverty reduction on the island and the road repairs, would be more urgent and also more worthy causes. On the other hand, there was also positive feedback on the news shared by government on their ‘official’ Facebook Page Government of St. Eustatius.

Stegers during his radio interview on Sunday explained that certain projects would be easier to execute, while other projects -such as the road restoration and stabilization of the Cliff- would be (much) more complicated and therefore would take longer to prepare and executed. According to Stegers this said nothing about the need or the urgency of the project, but more about the level of complexity. Stegers also said he and Government Commissioner Franco had a list of no less than 50 points which need urgent attention of the government formed by him and Mike Franco.