Several politicians from the ruling alliance of German parties — the CDU / CSU — have found themselves at the center of a scandal over the purchase of protective masks.
The most high-profile case was the case of the Bundestag deputy (since 2002) from the Christian Social Union Georg Nuslein, who collected 660 thousand euros for lobbying a mask manufacturer, writes, in particular, Spiegel.
The politician, according to the publication, participated in the ordering of FFP2 masks by government agencies. Nuslein announced last Friday that he would resign as deputy chairman of the CDU / CSU parliamentary group and would not run for the Bundestag again. At the moment, the Munich prosecutor’s office is investigating suspicions of corruption.
Christian Democratic Union MP Nicholas Lebel also used his position to lobby a Chinese mask manufacturer, for which he received a commission of 250 thousand euros (12 euro cents for each mask). He, as reported by the ARD TV channel, has also announced his resignation.
In general, as it turned out, almost two dozen “union” parliamentarians at various levels lobbied for the interests of suppliers for the federal government or campaigned for companies, for which they received a certain reward.
The leaders of the CDU parliamentary group in the Bundestag Ralph Brinkhaus and the regional group of the CSU Alexander Dobrindt sharply condemned the behavior of their parliamentary colleagues in a letter quoted by Business Insider.
“The receipt by MPs of cash payments for mediation in the supply of medical protective equipment in the fight against the pandemic causes our complete misunderstanding and severe condemnation,” they wrote.
The leaders of the faction noted that such behavior damages the reputation of the political force and is unacceptable.
Let us remind you that parliamentary elections are to be held in Germany at the end of September this year.
According to a poll by the YouGov Sociological Institute, only 26% of respondents are in favor of maintaining quarantine restrictions, and 9% are in favor of strengthening them. At the same time, 43% consider the restrictions introduced in the country to be too strict, and 17% support the complete abolition of all restrictions.