Disagreements in the city council: Group community breaks up

Created: 01/19/2022, 05:00 p.m

Unusual backdrop: Because of the corona pandemic, the city council meets in the council chambers.

© Hans Lippert

The free voters in the city council have terminated the cooperation as a parliamentary group with FDP man Edmund Häner.

He speaks of "expulsion".

Geretsried – The Free Voters (FW) in the City Council have terminated their faction community with the FDP member Edmund Häner.

In a press release, they justify the step with different political goals and Häner's going it alone.

He was apparently surprised by the statement on Tuesday.

He speaks of "expulsion" and criticizes the procedure.

In their press release, FW local leader Ann-Kathrin Güner and parliamentary group spokesman Heiko Hawla announced the dissolution of the group community for the end of January.

"Over time, we've found that our political goals and the way we work on the city council are further apart than we initially thought," says Güner.

Another reason is the applications that Häner made in the recent past.

“Our goal was to submit applications together and to move something forward.

Going it alone – and sometimes with other factions – without consultation is not exactly beneficial in a faction community,” adds Hawla.

Edmund Häner, FDP City Council © Hans Lippert

When asked by our newspaper, Häner wrote that he "literally found out 'on the street' last week that the Free Voters want to part with him. He then received a document from the FW for the city administration to sign. "On the other hand, I should agree to a joint press statement that we have separated amicably and of course nobody should publish individual interviews or letters to the editor," said the FDP city council. Up to this point in time, he had not had any factual justification for the actions of the FW. Häner: "In my view, the separation is therefore not amicable. Nevertheless, I agree with the separation." He very much regrets "this non-transparent approach by Freie Wahler Geretsried,but will not subject my liberal-political attitude and the right to freedom of expression to predetermined constraints".

Ann-Kathrin Güner, FW local chairman © Hans Lippert

In all of this, you have to know that the three actors were not directly involved when the group community was founded before the constituent meeting in 2020. Edmund Häner is the replacement for Larry Terwey, who left the city council shortly after the local elections for personal reasons. At that time, Terwey had looked for a faction that he could join. Previously, Günther Fuhrmann had been the only FDP member and therefore non-attached to the Geretsried city council for years. In order to end this lone fighter existence, Terwey latched onto the FW, whose topics were "almost congruent in terms of content in the election campaign". With Dominik Irmer, then spokesman for the FW parliamentary group, he found open ears.The parliamentary group had lost two seats on the city council in the election and judged the first talks with Terwey to be "very pleasant". When Irmer gave up his seat on the city council, Heiko Hawla became chairman of the parliamentary group, and Ann-Kathrin Güner moved up to the city council.

Heiko Hawla, FW parliamentary group spokesman © Archive

The five FW city councilors now want to continue working alone.

Güner: "Just because we are one less does not mean that we will be less active." Changes in the composition of the committees will be accepted.

Häner explains that he will remain true to his election promise to “ensure more transparency in political decisions” and continue to advocate citizen-oriented policy.

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