SURINAME · TELECOM · GOVERNANCE
Key Facts
- The country Suriname, a small South American country between Guyana and French Guiana, is led by President Jennifer Simons.
- What happened President Simons said on 21 October that she never agreed to let the TAS director stay on.
- The authority The Telecommunicatie Autoriteit Suriname (TAS) is the national telecom regulator, led by a director and watched over by a supervisory board.
- The director Wendy Jap-A-Joe has led TAS since a presidential resolution of 20 October 2021, and she disputes that her time in office has ended.
- The president’s condition Simons says she will sign no resolution naming a new director until an investigation at TAS has been carried out.
- The next step A summary court case over the handover has been started, and a ruling is awaited.
The Suriname TAS director dispute took a new turn on Wednesday 21 October, when President Jennifer Simons denied agreeing that the regulator’s director stays on. TAS, the Telecommunicatie Autoriteit Suriname, is the country’s telecom regulator, and Simons says an investigation must come before any new appointment.
Four Dutch-language Surinamese outlets reported her statement: Waterkant, the Suriname Herald, GFC Nieuws and Starnieuws. Our companion piece, Suriname’s telecom authority and its role explained, sets out what TAS does and why a leadership clash matters.
How the Suriname TAS Director Dispute Began
The Raad van Commissarissen (RvC), the supervisory board of TAS, announced on Tuesday 20 October that director Wendy Jap-A-Joe was no longer authorised to act. It said her five-year term, which began on 20 October 2021, had ended by law, as Waterkant and GFC Nieuws reported.
The board said she could no longer sign documents, approve payments or represent TAS, and that it now ran the authority on an interim basis. Starnieuws reported that the board cited articles 2 and 4 of the Wet Telecommunicatievoorzieningen, the Telecommunications Facilities Act.
Minister of Transport, Communication and Tourism Raymond Landveld wrote to her the same day, saying her term had expired and she must hand over. He also asked the board to arrange interim leadership, Starnieuws reported.
What President Simons Said on Wednesday
Simons said that a resolution had made Jap-A-Joe director until 20 October and that this period has now run out, the Suriname Herald reported. She said she had not agreed that the director could remain, and she denied any agreement to hear the director out first.
The president said the full board had wanted an investigation at TAS and that the director had no objection, but it never started. She told the board and the minister she will sign no resolution for a new director before the investigation, Waterkant and GFC Nieuws reported.
Simons said the board has started summary court proceedings, a kort geding, to force the handover. She hopes for a quick ruling so that TAS can return to normal, Starnieuws reported.
What the Law Says About Appointing a Director
The Telecommunications Facilities Act, key to the Suriname TAS director dispute, sets a five-year term, as Simons described it. The president appoints, suspends and dismisses the director, on the minister’s nomination and after the Council of Ministers approves.
The same route covers the director’s employment contract, which the Council of Ministers approves through the minister, Simons said. If TAS has no director and no deputy, she said, the supervisory board takes over management temporarily, as Waterkant reported.
The two sides give different end dates: the board and Landveld say Monday 19 October, the Suriname Herald reported. Simons cites a resolution running to 20 October, as does Starnieuws for the minister’s letter.
Who Is Pushing Which Position
In the Suriname TAS director dispute, Jap-A-Joe says her time is not up, Starnieuws reported. In a letter dated 20 October she pointed to her employment contract and argued that the director is not absent under article 4.
Ronnie Brunswijk, chairman of the coalition party ABOP, called the board’s conduct childish and said a judge must settle the matter, the Suriname Herald reported. He said the situation stays as it is until the ruling, and that his party will abide by it.
The Suriname Herald reported on 21 October that TAS and the state were preparing court action to enforce the handover (report). It named damages and possible prosecution among the options, and which party files differs between accounts.
Scuffle, Police and Parliament
When the board went to the TAS office on Tuesday, the handover did not happen, and Jap-A-Joe left the building under escort, Starnieuws reported. Board chairman Emanuel Scheek said he was grabbed and pushed, and he announced a police complaint, the Suriname Herald reported.
Scheek said police at the site told him they had orders from higher up to withdraw, and the source of that order is unknown. Justice and Security Minister Harish Monorath said a separate recall of police assigned to Landveld is part of a wider reassignment policy, Starnieuws reported.
The ABOP faction walked out of the National Assembly on Tuesday in anger over the TAS affair, the Suriname Herald reported. The Suriname TAS director dispute now sits inside the governing coalition as well as at the regulator.
What It Means for US Readers
Suriname is courting American capital in oil and other sectors, as our reports on Suriname’s key economic players and its search for US investment show. A regulator without a settled head is a governance question for any telecom or technology firm that deals with TAS.
Companies that deal with TAS will want to know who signs for it while the Suriname TAS director dispute is before the court. The regulator’s supervisory board says it alone now runs the authority, while the director says her term has not ended.
What Is Not Known
In the Suriname TAS director dispute, it is not known when the summary judge will rule or which party filed the case. Nor is it known who would be nominated as the next director.
No investigation in the Suriname TAS director dispute has a start date or a named investigator. It is not known who first said the president had agreed to let the director stay.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is TAS in Suriname?
The Telecommunicatie Autoriteit Suriname is the national telecom regulator, set up under the Telecommunications Facilities Act. It has a director and a supervisory board, the Raad van Commissarissen.
Who is the TAS director?
Wendy Jap-A-Joe was appointed by presidential resolution effective 20 October 2021. The supervisory board says her five-year term has ended, and she disputes that.
What did President Simons say?
On Wednesday 21 October she said she never agreed that the director could stay on after the term ended. She will sign no resolution for a new director until an investigation has been carried out.
Who appoints a new TAS director?
The president appoints the director on the minister’s nomination, after the Council of Ministers approves. The term is five years.
Is the Suriname TAS director dispute in court?
Simons says the supervisory board has started summary proceedings to force a handover. A ruling has not been reported yet.
Sources: Suriname Herald (President Simons), 21 October 2026; Waterkant (President Simons), 22 October 2026; GFC Nieuws (President Simons), 21 October 2026; Starnieuws (President Simons), 21 October 2026; Starnieuws (Minister Landveld’s letter), 20 October 2026; Starnieuws (supervisory board notice), 20 October 2026; Waterkant (supervisory board takes over), 20 October 2026; Suriname Herald (Minister Landveld), 21 October 2026; Suriname Herald (Brunswijk), 22 October 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief