The province of South Holland has also reported the leak of Esmah Lahlah’s application for mayor of Delft. Earlier this week it was announced that the GroenLinks-PvdA MP had also applied for a job in the South Holland city. The reports are now piling up: the province of North Brabant and the municipality of Tilburg also filed a report earlier, after Lahlah’s application for the mayor’s post in Tilburg had already been leaked.
In the run-up to the elections in October, it became clear that Lahlah was running for mayor in her home city of Tilburg. Due to the fuss about the leak, the official announcement of the new mayor was even brought forward. Afterwards, Lahlah admitted that she could have better discussed her application within her party.
The matter came to light after Brabants Dagblad had seen her application letter. The province and the municipality of Tilburg then filed a report. “Leaking from the procedure surrounding the appointment of a mayor is punishable,” Ina Adema, King’s Commissioner in Brabant, said earlier. “It is a violation of official secrecy and therefore a crime.”
Second application
This week it turned out that Lahlah had also applied for a job in Delft, where her application was also leaked. The brand new GroenLinks-PvdA leader Jesse Klaver confirmed to Omroep Brabant on Monday that he knew about this. “But I am happy that she remains in our group,” he said.
“I know Esmah as someone with great social involvement, both nationally and locally,” says Klaver, who is from Roosendaal. “We need people like Esmah.” It is now the second time in a short time that her application has been leaked.
How exceptional is the leaking of a job application?
It is more common for a candidate’s name to leak, public administration expert Niels Karsten previously told Omroep Brabant. “It is a crime and the maximum penalty is one year in prison or a fine of 25,000 euros. In addition, you will get a criminal record, so it is a serious offense.”
What makes this case special is that it is not just about the name, but about the application letter itself. “That is remarkable,” says Karsten. “Such a letter is normally in the hands of only a few people. The fact that it leaks out is truly exceptional.”
‘Unacceptable’
The province of South Holland is now taking legal action. “This violation is unacceptable and constitutes a criminal offense. It is up to the National Criminal Investigation Department to investigate this further,” said King’s Commissioner Wouter Kolff.
Kolff says he finds it striking that the fuss seems to revolve mainly around the fact that Lahlah applied for a job, and not about the leak itself. “The outrage should be in the breach of confidentiality,” he says. “Not in showing ambition. This action damages someone who wants to serve society with conviction.”
Both times the GroenLinks-PvdA politician missed the position. In Tilburg, D66 member Fleur Gräper was announced early as mayor, in Delft the post went to former D66 leader Alexander Pechtold.
