For years, a woman has been experiencing nuisance from the illegal excavation of soil with diabase around her house. Diabase is a raw material used for the construction of roads and to build houses. For a long time there was no policy regarding the extraction of diabase. The excavation of diabase creates deep holes, which are then used to illegally dump waste. The woman in question reported the nuisance to the Directorate of Supervision and Enforcement that is part of the OLB (Public Entity Bonaire). She raised a complaint with the Ombudsman regarding the way in which the OLB had dealt with her matter.
The Ombudsman concluded that the actions by the Directorate of Supervision and Enforcement were not adequate and fair. The Directorate of Supervision and Enforcement did not take the initiative, in collaboration with other departments/the Executive Board of the OLB, to investigate what could have been done in this situation. Furthermore, the Ombudsman is of the opinion that it is improper that the Directorate of Supervision and Enforcement dismissed the woman’s request for compensation for damages as a matter governed by private law and therefore not a matter that they could deal with. In doing so, the Directorate of Supervision and Enforcement acted contrary to the requirements of professional cooperation and a lenient stance. The Ombudsman therefore considered the woman’s complaint to be well-founded and made a recommendation to the OLB. He recommended that the OLB present a specific proposal regarding the woman’s request for compensation for damages within three months of the report being made public.
