An unsafe working atmosphere, seriously disturbed relationships and a mayor who fails against councilors, aldermen and officials. That image comes out of a secret report on the management culture in Roosendaal, which is presented in the city council on Wednesday evening but is already in the hands of Omroep Brabant.
The investigation was conducted in response to the sudden departure of aldermen Sanneke Vermeulen (VVD) and Arwen van Gestel (VLP) in September 2024. The city council wanted to know about social safety and administrative culture within the municipality. A destructive image emerges from the report that has now been delivered a year later.
Unsafe or intimidated
Han van Midden will act as mayor of Roosendaal in 2019. With his arrival, employees, administrators and politicians rising tensions between college members, between the mayor and municipal council and between administrators and the official organization ‘, the report says.
In the conversations that the researchers have held, incidents are mentioned in which directors and officials feel unsafe or intimidated, for example if mayor of the middle or alderman of Gestel (openly) drop out against council members, fellow directors or officials’.
Conflict between two parties
An important cause of the unsafe working atmosphere is the political struggle between the two local parties Free Liberal Party (VLP) and Roosendaal List (RL). The two parties have fallen public for a long time, where the man is regularly played and it is not about the content. For a long time, the Roosendaal list was in the college, but that changed in 2022. Then the VLP became the largest party and the party was allowed to deliver aldermen.
The VLP wants to show that things can be done differently. More transparent, fairer and more effective. Alderman Van Gestel feels personally driven to make that change come true. But not all college members can or want to go with the high pace that the VLP strives for. Especially between aldermen of Gestel and Van der Star on one side and Vermeulen on the other, quarrels start.
The poisonous culture also worked in the official organization of the municipality. Some officials who were able to work well with the new VLP aldermen were confronted with harassment or exclusion. Civil servants were asked to help with political arguments, for example by conducting investigations into integrity violations at the request of directors.
Two aldermen leave
The fight within the college also escalates in 2022 and 2023. Vermeulen regularly has to deal with bullying behavior, gossip and exclusion. On the other hand, the ambitious alderman of Gestel is afraid of loss of face, because his political promises and ambitions are in danger of ending.
Mayor of Midden is unable to restore trust and turn the tide. During college days, attention is paid to improving the relationships and cooperation, but concrete results are not forthcoming. On the contrary: the fight escalates further and from the middle also contributes to the unsafe culture.
Low point in 2024
In the course of 2024 the fight reaches a low point. The relationships between aldermen Vermeulen and Van Gestel are then so disturbed that “a professional functioning college of B&W is hardly yet the case,” the researchers write. Confidential information from the college repeatedly leaks outside, making the conflict also an audience.
In May 2024, Mayor Van Midden decided to stop as mayor in Roosendaal. He is succeeded by Mark Buijs (VVD). “His arrival inspires many hope for recovery. Interviews show that Buijs is experienced as approachable and people -oriented: his style temporarily soften the tone of the debate.”
The damage is already too great at that time: Van Gestel speaks in public about the loss of trust in Vermeulen and no longer wants to work with her. Vermeulen will resign on 8 September. Two days later the departure of Alderman Van Gestel also follows.
City Council talks about report
The Roosendaal city council is talking about the report this Wednesday evening. Before that time, the municipality does not want to respond to questions about this issue.