Hubert Aiwanger: Many questions remain unanswered – the lightning analysis of his answers

Opinion

Questionnaire published
Many questions, hardly any clarification – and a contradiction: Aiwanger’s answers to Söder in the lightning analysis

Now it is available, the catalog of questions for Hubert Aiwanger. One searches in vain for reliable answers from the Bavarian Deputy Prime Minister. The lightning analysis.

Markus Söder asked for answers and got them. The Bavarian Prime Minister and CSU leader cannot actually be satisfied with the result.

Much not remembered, all a long time ago: Hubert Aiwanger’s written comments on the leaflet affair can be summed up roughly like this, which were published on Sunday morning. That seems to be enough for Söder, who is probably primarily interested in staying in power shortly before the state elections. He leaves his deputy and economics minister from the Free Voters in office. Overall, a dismissal is not proportionate, said the Prime Minister.

Measured against the expectations that Söder had previously placed on Aiwanger’s answers, this is at least astonishing. The CSU boss asked Aiwanger to answer 25 questions in order to “quickly” clarify and, at best, eliminate the allegations of anti-Semitism. All questions must be “clarified beyond any doubt” and “no suspicion should remain”.

Very close

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Despite the abundance of questions, Aiwanger’s answers fit on just four A4 pages. No wonder: most of it is either no longer known to him, eludes his knowledge, or he can no longer remember. How did the anti-Semitic leaflet end up in his school bag? Did he pass it on? How did suspicion fall on him? Relevant questions to which Aiwanger still has no answer.

Hubert Aiwanger has “preliminary remarks”

The anti-Semitic pamphlet – which his brother, who is one year his senior, claims to have written, obviously left a lasting impression on Aiwanger. “I was shocked,” he replies when asked how he rated the flyer at the time. Asked about the personal consequences he drew from the affair at the time, Aiwanger writes. “The incident was a drastic experience for me. It triggered important mental processes.”

And apparently most of the memories of the supposedly “drastic experience” are suppressed.

Aiwanger’s “preliminary remark” occupies the most space, with which he flies in his dubious catalog of answers. Here the question arises as to what importance Prime Minister Söder really gave to the lines for his decision, he credited Aiwanger, among other things, with showing remorse and apologizing.

leaflet affair
Aiwanger’s week full of twists and turns

09/01/2023

Both can be inferred from Aiwanger’s remarks at best with a lot of benevolence. As with his first statement in the Economics Ministry, Aiwanger makes a nonpology, a pseudo-apology: He regrets it “if” he “hurt feelings” through his behavior. But only then?

Aiwanger is much clearer in his repeated accusation that he was exposed to a campaign to “politically and personally finish him off”. Aiwanger once again presented himself as a victim, complained that the incidents were around 36 years ago and framed the cause – despite statements from several witnesses – as great speculation: “The truthfulness of many allegations could neither be determined beyond doubt” nor “facts (…) completely reconstructed”. become. An “interpretation and classification in the situational context is no longer possible,” writes Aiwanger.

Whether Bavaria’s deputy head of government actually regrets it? Is more than questionable after reading the answers, which are either none or already known statements. Shortly after publication of the answered questionnaire said Aiwanger on his account at X, formerly Twitter: “Now it’s confirmed what I said from the beginning: There’s no reason to fire me, the campaign against me has failed.”