Next political unrest at the municipal level in the Tyrolean city of Ausserfern: After the scandal in the eleven-member Biberwier municipal council – all five opposition members resigned as a unit, keyword: Fernpass package – community leader Regina Karlen in Breitenwang now also says: “It’s enough! ” The allocation of a municipal apartment to the mayor’s son is not acceptable to them.
“If that is possible in Tyrol, I do not want to continue,” says a deeply disappointed Regina Karlen, opposition leader of the Green community in Breitenwang near Reutte, describing her state of mind to the “Krone”. By “that” she means an official act by BM Hanspeter Wagner (absolute majority in the local parliament).
“Should have discovered prejudices”
About a year ago, he arranged for his son and his family to move into a renovated municipal apartment for 80,000 euros. What is reprehensible for the representative is that an apartment was allocated for the first time without a municipal decision and that the rental costs were well below the ‘usual’ level.
And she found it scandalous that she later found out that a single mother with three children was urgently looking for a roof over her head: “A mayor who does it alone can only do so in an emergency situation. Moreover, he should have recognized his bias.”
The Public Prosecution Service and community supervisors saw no abuses
Karlen contacted the prosecutor’s office in April and requested a legal investigation. As a result, it quickly became known that no investigation would be initiated. The Greens representative then thought out loud about withdrawing in frustration, but wanted to wait for the response from the municipal supervisor, who was also involved. This has now arrived, including a “10 percent clause” and also sees no abuses on Wagner’s part. The local politician, on the other hand, sees no point in “continuing to work in a system in which such a thing is legally possible.”
That is why Karlen chose Thursday’s city council meeting as an opportunity to draw her personal conclusion in the presence of some surprised colleagues.
“All of you from the mayor’s group are silent about this”
The remarkable speech can certainly be interpreted as a reckoning. The departing woman despairs of the legal system, “which allows a mayor to provide his own son with a municipal apartment without an emergency and denies help to a single parent in a truly precarious situation.” The mayor believes that no mistake was made. ‘But is what fits through a loophole from a legal point of view also morally OK?’ she asks, “and all of you in the mayor’s group are silent about it.”
No comment from the mayor
Village boss Wagner also remained silent, namely towards the “Krone”. He could not be reached for comment and requests for a callback were ignored. Regina Karlen, on the other hand, has at least achieved that there will be clear criteria for the allocation of municipal housing in Breitenwang in the future. But not until she was gone, they said.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
