“There is no backlog in the payment of the bridging allowance for the year 2025 to staff of Streekziekenhuis Atjoni,” Minister André Misiekaba of Volksgezondheid, Welzijn en Arbeid said on Wednesday before the start of the Council of Ministers.
The minister said that the 2025 bridging allowance had been incorporated into the government contribution, which is provided quarterly to Streekziekenhuis Atjoni for the payment of salaries and various allowances. “So there is no backlog when it comes to the bridging allowance for 2025.” He stressed that there is, however, a backlog of three months for this year. The ministry failed to pay this allowance to staff for the months of January, February and March. Payments for April, May and June have already been made.
According to him, a receipt has already been issued for the payment of this allowance for the first three months of the year. “It now lies entirely with the Ministry of Finance and Planning.” He further stated that the ministry does not always receive the documents on time from Atjoni’s financial department. “Things do not always go smoothly with the documents we have to receive from Atjoni’s financial department.” The documents are submitted late, meaning certain payments cannot be made on time.
The management of the regional hospital recently announced that the salaries for January and February 2026 had been paid despite not receiving the government contributions. The payment was nevertheless made possible through advances from the bank where it holds its accounts, due to the management’s social responsibility towards its staff.
The management further stressed at the time that the bridging, performance and clothing allowances were not included in the funds received. Once the funds have been deposited, the above-mentioned allowances will be paid.
