What role does the Chancellor play in the Wirecard scandal?
Angela Merkel has to face a committee of inquiry on Friday.
Update from April 23, 10:00 a.m .:
In these minutes, Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) is to testify in the Wirecard investigative committee - judging by TV images, Merkel is still on the way to the meeting room in the Paul Löbe House not far from the Bundestag building.
Merkel in the Wirecard Committee: CSU man attacks Guttenberg and three ministers - "Insulted me"
Update from April 23, 9.50 a.m.:
Before the questioning of Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) in the Wirecard investigation committee, the CSU financial politician Hans Michelbach sharply criticized his party colleague Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg for his lobbying work in the Chancellery. "You can't hire a Chancellor for business," Michelbach told the
Handelsblatt
on Friday. "Especially not if you haven't checked the business model yourself and have pocketed 900,000 euros for it," added Michelbach.
The Wirecard scandal "cost him friendship with Guttenberg," said the CSU politician, who is also the deputy chairman of the parliamentary committee of inquiry into the events surrounding the alleged billion-dollar fraud of the former Dax group.
"He berated me for not supporting him."
The CSU finance politician drew a positive balance of the work of the committee.
This revealed "how such an incomparable attack on the market economy was possible," said Michelbach.
If everything is added up - the losses for investors, the damage for creditors - then a total of at least 22 billion euros has been lost so far.
And the sum will probably continue to grow with the bankruptcy proceedings.
"That such a thing was possible, one has to say: Nothing worked on a broad level, politics and financial supervision made it too easy for the fraudsters." the financial supervisory authority Bafin had been informed. In particular, Michelbach criticized Finance State Secretary Jörg Kukies.
This was "a very active part of the failure", but also Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, Justice Minister Christine Lambrecht (both SPD) and Economics Minister Peter Altmaier (CDU) should be "asked about their responsibility for the disaster," said the CSU politician .
Merkel has to face Wirecard committee of inquiry - Minister: "Absurd fairy tale"
First report:
Berlin - Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) will be questioned on Friday (10:00 a.m.) in the investigative committee about the accounting scandal at the former Dax company Wirecard.
She campaigned for Wirecard on a trip to China in September 2019.
At that time, critical media reports on the scandalous company were already known - according to a government spokesman, Merkel knew nothing of possible serious irregularities at Wirecard at the time of the trip.
Wirecard scandal: Chancellor Merkel is questioned by the investigative committee
The members of the committee of inquiry also want to ask Merkel about lobbying in the Chancellery.
Before the trip to China, the Chancellor had a visit from former Economics Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, who worked as a lobbyist for Wirecard and referred Merkel to the company.
Wirecard wanted to expand its business in China at the time.
The Chancellor's commitment was worth gold for the scandalous company, say the members of the investigative committee - also because Wirecard was able to counter critics with it.
In this way, Merkel * unintentionally contributed to an extension of the alleged balance sheet fraud.
Government responsibility for Wirecard scandal?
Scholz speaks of an "absurd fairy tale"
Wirecard then admitted last summer that 1.9 billion euros could not be found on the balance sheet.
The Munich public prosecutor assumes that Wirecard has been falsifying its balance sheets since at least 2015.
SPD Chancellor candidate Olaf Scholz had already testified in the investigative committee on Thursday and spoke of an "absurd fairy tale".
The finance minister said: "The responsibility for this large-scale fraud does not lie with the federal government." The company had evidently acted with a high level of criminal energy.
(lks / dpa)
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