The long -standing administrative crisis in Roosendaal has been sworn for the time being. Alderman Evelien van der Star can continue, new directors must go through a training program in the future and now also prospective councilors must be properly supervised. These are the most important results of the specially inserted council meeting on Thursday evening.
The city council discussed the destructive report on years of poisonous administrative culture at the city office. After the investigation, the arrows have recently focused primarily on alderman Van der Star. The alderman is partly held responsible for bullying behavior towards her colleague alderman Sanneke Vermeulen. He no longer felt safe and therefore decided to resign last year.
Emotional
Alderman Van der Star reacted emotionally to the allegations. “It has never been my intention. In addition to director, I am also people, partner, mother and daughter. The image that was sketched in the media that there would have been bullying in the context of a disability, I want to be explicitly out of the world.”
“I have to face the bullying behavior or a feeling. I certainly don’t want to crawl into the victim role, but this has a major impact on my environment.”
Disfigured control culture
According to the investigation report, civil servants also regularly fell victim to intimidation or abuse by college members. Alderman Van der Star went for her share in the disgusted administrative culture before apologies for her behavior.
‘Poisonous cocktail’ is not only to count on alderman
After it became clear that a motion of no confidence or a motion of disapproval against her would not have a chance, they were withdrawn by the petitioners. A majority in the city council believes that the alderman cannot be held responsible for the situation in the recent past.
“We have all played a role in this poisonous cocktail. I know alderman Van der Star as someone who always has the best for the municipality. Always on the content and never on the person. The alderman has more self -reflection in her toe than many aldermen in the past,” says party chairman Alex Raggers of Coalitiepart Vlp ”
“Stop this checkout culture.”
His colleague party leader Christian Villée van GroenLinks agrees with Raggers. “Alderman Van der Star has put Inclusion on the map. Examples of this are visible everywhere in the municipality. In the report we are explicitly asked not to make the outcome political. Therefore stop this settlement culture.”
Nevertheless, both the forum for Democracy and List De Regt found that alderman Van der Star could no longer stay on. “We are not concerned with the personal relationship with the alderman, but bullying behavior is one of the worst things that you can happen to as a person. Those are personal dramas. If we allow this to a blind eye, where is the boundary? We can only continue when we say goodbye to the past,” said party chairman Eric de Regt.
His colleague Corrie van Leerzem of FVD agrees with him: “The alderman had an active role in this poisonous interplay. Whether she did this consciously or unconsciously makes no difference. The alderman has shown too little self -reflection. She has damaged the confidence in her portfolio and thereby the credibility of college as a whole.”
“I realize that I am not perfect. I am willing to listen, learn and change.”
It finally remained with these solid words of both opposition parties. The alderman continues in her position with the support of a majority in the city council.
“I realize that I am not perfect. I am willing to listen, learn and change,” said the alderman who made attempts several times in vain to talk to Vermeulen. In addition, Van der Star has hired a coach to help her become a ‘better director and better person’.
‘Vizier forward’
According to Mayor Marc Buijs it was ‘good to hear all arguments’. “But now, with the visor, let’s also get started with each other to offer perspective to the people in the city and the villages.”