Corona pandemic
Defense Commissioner sees Corona official assistance “very critical”
Armed Forces Commissioner Eva Högl (SPD) is critical of the scope of Corona administrative assistance by Bundeswehr soldiers. Photo: Kay Nietfeld / dpa
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Soldiers must serve in health facilities over the holidays. The fact that the military still has to step in is met with incomprehension by the Bundestag’s defense commissioner.
The Armed Forces Commissioner Eva Högl (SPD) considers the type and scope of Corona administrative assistance by thousands of Bundeswehr soldiers to be increasingly problematic.
“I see it very critically that the Bundeswehr is still represented in this level of administrative assistance. That was completely good and right at the beginning, “said Högl of the German Press Agency in Berlin. Districts and everyone else who are actually responsible for disaster relief and civil protection on a civilian level could and should have used the time to set up structures so that “you don’t call the Bundeswehr again every time things get tight”. Högl said: “Now civilians are in demand.”
Administrative assistance
The Armed Forces Commissioner warned of increasing deficiencies in the training of the armed forces. In addition, there have already been complaints because men and women of the Bundeswehr were deployed in offices as a kind of holiday replacement. “Last year we had cases over Christmas and also over Easter where the civilian employees from the health authorities took their well-deserved annual vacation and the soldiers held their positions, as soldiers tell me,” said Högl. “Of course that shouldn’t be.”
According to the Bundeswehr, around 6,500 men and women will do active service in administrative assistance over the Christmas holidays. According to this, around 1,600 soldiers work in vaccination facilities and around 1,700 in hospitals and care facilities, as the Territorial Tasks Command, which is responsible for administrative assistance, announced on request. According to this, around 3,200 soldiers are deployed in health departments and authorities over Christmas, i.e. around half.
The administrative assistance in health authorities is primarily about the follow-up of corona cases. There is a lack of understanding that soldiers have to continue to be deployed for such computer and telephone services.
“We are now really struggling in the Bundeswehr to compensate for the administrative assistance. The soldiers who are active in administrative assistance do not usually stand around. Everything is sewn to the edge when it comes to staffing, ”said the Armed Forces Commissioner. It certified the soldiers that their administrative assistance was excellent. One can be very proud of that. But: “It will take a long time to get the Bundeswehr back to where it was before the pandemic. The fact that the Bundeswehr is providing administrative assistance in combating the pandemic must not be permanent. “