Manfred Smol, councilor for Forum for Democracy in Helmond, leaves the city council after a fuss about a Twitter account. This was announced by the party leader, Theo Heller, during a council meeting on Thursday.
Dozens of messages were posted on the account in which politicians such as Mark Rutte and Hugo de Jonge are compared with Nazi leaders, Omroep Brabant reports. An investigation by the broadcaster last week showed that Smol was behind the account.
The faction discussed the commotion about the account last Tuesday evening. After that, Smol “indicated that he thinks that his position as councilor is no longer a workable option, given the fuss that has arisen”, according to party chairman Heller.
Photoshopped photos of Rutte and De Jonge in Nazi uniforms were shared on the account, which had existed since 2010. Last week, after Omroep Brabant reported that Smol was behind the account, it was removed. Forum for Democracy in Helmond already distanced itself from “all expressions that are unacceptable”, according to Heller.