During a plenary sitting of the National Assembly of Suriname (De Nationale Assemblée, DNA) on 15 October, National Assembly member Ann Sadi from the NDP party has formally submitted three urgent questions to the national government, pressing for immediate clarification on long-running unresolved issues affecting multiple groups and pressing public safety concerns. Sadi’s first set of questions was directed to the Minister of Defense, centered on growing anxiety among retired military personnel over delays and administrative backlogs in the renewal of their SZF health insurance cards. Retired service members have been left in limbo for weeks, uncertain about their access to critical medical care, and Sadi is pushing for an official explanation of the root causes behind the renewal backlog and a clear timeline for when affected retirees will receive concrete resolution. Her second area of focus addresses the long-unpaid compensation claims of local bus owners, who have waited years for owed payments from the government. After years of repeated protests and unfulfilled promises, Sadi says bus operators once again feel they are being given empty assurances and strung along by authorities. She has called on the Minister of Transport to issue a public update on the outstanding payments and outline a clear plan for disbursement. The third and most pressing public safety issue Sadi raised is the growing risk to the structural integrity and traffic safety of the Jules Wijdenbosch Bridge, a critical infrastructure link for Suriname. Sadi pointed out that heavily loaded logging trucks and other oversize freight vehicles now cross the bridge at all hours of the day and night, discarding a long-standing safety protocol that previously restricted heavy-weight transport crossings to the window between midnight and 5 a.m., with mandatory official escort for every passage. The issue of unregulated heavy traffic on the bridge has previously been raised by Sadi’s fellow NDP party legislator Ingrid Karta-Bink, but no permanent policy adjustment has been implemented to date. Sadi is questioning why the proven time restriction and escort policy has been abandoned, and has called on the Minister of Public Works and the Minister of Justice and Security to step up enforcement of traffic rules and increase regular inspections of heavy vehicles using the bridge, to prevent a potential catastrophic safety incident.
Sadi wil ingrijpen bij problemen bushouders, gepensioneerde militairen en ‘Bosje brug’
