After the hearing of Governor Markus Wallner in the ÖVP’s corruption inquiry commission in Vienna on June 1, opposition parties submitted two requests for additional evidence, which the state administration has now answered in more than 200 pages. During the review of thousands of files and 755 proceedings, no evidence was found that benefits had been awarded or claimed, Florian Themeßl-Huber, head of the state’s press service, told the APA.
On the one hand, the investigations concerned which electronic devices contained data about the federal government in connection with the Wirtschaftsbund affair. On the other hand, all proceedings had to be examined for possible influence where companies that had advertised in the “Vorarlberger Wirtschaft” had party status.
Not a subject of research in Vienna
However, because no reference to the subject matter of the study was found during the review of all potentially relevant files and documents, no files could be provided, explains Themeßl-Huber. In such a case, however, all checked files should be listed. In addition, it should be demonstrated why these are not relevant. This eventually resulted in a 200-page answer to the U-Commission. The first question about data on electronic devices and storage media looked at some 8,000 documents, 2,000 of which had “at least a rudimentary” connection to the federal government. However, according to the state, none of these contained any reference to the subject matter of the investigation. Everything relevant to the file was archived by the governor, Themeßl-Huber explained, and relevant text messages were also forwarded to the secretariat and archived there.
On the second point – the question of possible influence on the advertising process in the “Vorarlberger Wirtschaft” – the opposition submitted a list of 81 companies, which the state had added to 115. reviewed by the clerks of the respective district authorities. Again, there were no indications of a connection with the subject of the investigation, so that no files could be supplied.
The procedures were listed in a list sorted by company, which alone amounted to more than a hundred pages. Vorarlberg’s response has now been sent to the National Council. The opposition can now set a new deadline for the country if they find the answer unsatisfactory. The Constitutional Court then decides whether the reasons for rejecting the answer are sufficient.
Themeßl-Huber, who is considered a close confidant of the governor, once again called for the general suspicions to be stopped. “If anyone knows of a specific case, please report it.”
Source: Krone
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