Double feeling with Bergenaren after ex-official conviction: “Hope that cesspool will still open”

The judge blames the former civil servant for taking out a very favorable mortgage for himself with a project developer, with whom he also did business in his position. It concerned 165,000 euros, for which he did not have to pay interest and repayments for years.

Official bribery

According to the judge, this is contrary to his official duty, since Van H. has benefited from this. “There is no evidence that the project developer has been favored, but that makes no difference to the criminality.” This is because there is a ‘significant chance that the loan was granted in order to get something in return’, and ‘is there a question of official bribery’.

Watch a clip of the pronunciation below (text continues below the video).

The fact that there is now a conviction against the ex-official is partly due to Bergenaar Fred Vos from the Facebook page Moving Mountains Together. It was Vos who found out through the land registry that the project developer had provided a loan to Eric van H. He is happy that there is now a conviction, but is disappointed that the ex-official is only punished for accepting the mortgage.

“I understand the ruling based on the evidence that is now on the table,” Vos told NH Nieuws. “Nevertheless, there is of course a much bigger picture. There have been more people within the municipality who knew about this, I am convinced. Van H. has told me that if he is convicted, the cesspool will open completely. I hope that will be the case. is happening now.”

Erase traces

According to René Meijer, previously spokesperson for the residents’ group More Beautiful Mountains, that’s not going to happen. He also accepts the judge’s decision. “If there is no evidence, then this is what it is. That is the beauty of our rule of law. I do have mixed feelings about it because the civil servant has also had time to cover his tracks. There is much more to the hand, but it cannot be proved and we have to accept that.”

The investigation into the possible corruption of the official caused a lot of unrest in Bergen. The former civil servant was involved in various ongoing projects, such as the redevelopment of the center of Bergen, various major housing plans and the football merger in Egmond aan den Hoef. Many residents feel that these projects should be re-examined, as the official was the project leader.

According to the court, it has not been proven that there is a conflict of interest in large construction projects. However, confidence in public administration has taken a serious blow (text continues below video).

Also Marjolein Pepping from the Manifest group had hoped that more clarity would be given about the municipality’s approach to large construction projects. “A lot has not surfaced. So you could say that Van H. has escaped the dance. The fact is that a convicted ex-official does not provide more confidence in the municipal council. We hope that we can now have a new college and that they can work on a better governance culture.”

René Meijer, from Mooier Bergen, also hopes that the arrival of a new council will change the wind when it comes to resident participation. “Apart from the mortgage, no criminal offenses were committed, but there was a pattern in how the municipality dealt with residents. This official was always involved as project leader. It was always the case that the municipality first came up with a plan. came and the residents had to adapt. I hope things are better now.”