The reappraisal of the mask affair surrounding Alfred Sauter and Georg Nüßlein in the Bavarian state parliament ended in a dispute. The politicians involved voiced many accusations against the parties and their colleagues.
Munich – The parliamentary reappraisal of the mask affair involving two CSU politicians ended on Tuesday evening (23 May) in disputes, accusations and a verbal exchange of blows between the parties. The Bavarian state parliament condemned the business dealings of former CSU deputies Alfred Sauter and Georg Nüßlein with sharp words. He called their actions shameless enrichment in a crisis.
"Bad boys": Sauter justifies mask deals
Sauter justified his actions in a speech, but remained silent as a witness in the investigative committee. According to Sauter, there is apparently a need for a few "bad boys," as he put it. For him, it was only a matter of solving the procurement problems of the state. He also remained silent when asked whether he saw moral wrongdoing in his actions. Instead, he lamented personal discrediting as he stood at the lectern. For him, the business was only about brokerage so that protective equipment could be procured. According to Sauter himself, he donated or paid tax on the money collected.
Alfred Sauter was summoned as a witness to a committee of inquiry because of the CSU mask affair. © IMAGO / Smith
The committee wanted to find out whether people close to the CSU were given preferential treatment when concluding mask deals. He also wanted to clarify the possible involvement of politicians in the state government's mask business during the pandemic. The committee also aimed to disclose the sometimes high commission payments of participating companies to members of parliament.
Sauter and Nüßlein had collected a large commission for brokering mask deals at the beginning of the pandemic. In 2022, the two politicians were exonerated of the accusation of bribery by the Federal Court of Justice. Sauter and Nüßlein emphasized several times that they acted only as lawyers. One reaction to the mask affair was the tightening of the rules for secondary activities of members of the state parliament in Bavaria.
"Immoral" and "shamelessness": politicians voice their accusations
In the course of the expulsion, the parties began to quarrel. Winfried Bausback, CSU politician and committee chairman, accused the FDP, SPD and Greens of using "fake news" in their minority report. He called the report a pamphlet and accused the traffic light parties of having twisted their own statements from committee meetings. Bausback emphasized that all of Bavaria's procurement of masks had been carried out strictly in accordance with the law. There was no political influence or other related interests, he said.
(By the way: Our Bavaria newsletter informs you about all the important stories from the Free State. Sign up here.)
0
Also Read
"Clearly, where the journey is going": Weather outlook for the turn of the month – a serious concern remains
READ
Hiker photographed bear in the Allgäu: Shepherd with great worries - "I can't sleep"
READ
"The madness": Important detail concealed? - Company buys million-dollar property and is now suing the city
READ
Bear spotted in the Allgäu: authorities issue warning
READ
Out for the station bombers: police grab seven Munich residents
READ
Fancy a voyage of discovery?
My Area
"On the other hand, the identity of the provider, the intermediary or the contact provider and their political party affiliation were not decisive," Bausback emphasized. He justified that there was a direct way to bring the offer of the masks to the state government. Other politicians on the committee also commented on the mask affair. Florian Siekmann, Green Party politician and vice-chairman of the committee, once again spoke of "CSU mask deals" and "CSU felt". "Felt and concealment, these are your core competencies, we do not want to and will not dispute them," Siekmann emphasized. Markus Rinderspracher of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) called the mask affair an "immoral, dirty tsunami of political shamelessness."
Commission in the millions: Munich Higher Regional Court dissatisfied with the legal situation
"In case of doubt, good contacts in the State Chancellery were more important than valid certificates," Siekmann accused his colleagues. He emphasized that, from his point of view, a country should not be governed in this way and criticized Markus Söder for a mask offer from Andreas Scheuer via SMS. Bausback renewed the criticism of the moral misconduct of Sauter, Nüßlein and Andrea Tandler, who is said to have helped broker the masks and received a commission in the millions. The daughter of former CSU general secretary Gerold Tandler is currently in custody on tax charges.
According to Bausback, these three people have "turned the pandemic into a personal business model." The Munich Higher Regional Court was involved in the examination of the allegations against Sauter and Nüßlein. It ruled in favour of the two politicians, but criticised the legislation, calling the decision "the abusive commercialisation of the mandate taking advantage of a national emergency of unprecedented importance". According to the current legal situation, this remains unpunished. For the court, this is in blatant contradiction to the general sense of justice and is hardly justifiable. (ada with material from dpa)
You can always read all the news from all over Bavaria with us. News and stories from Bavaria can also be found on our Facebook page Merkur Bayern.