The Drenthe branch of the VVD put forward Ewout Klok from Ten Arlo as a candidate for a place on the House of Representatives list, but the national selection committee dismissed this advice. A decision that the Hoogeven entrepreneur cannot understand. “I am now being personally wronged and the board is insulting the VVD in Drenthe.”
At first, Klok hesitated to apply for a place on the list. But after he had rented out his gas station in Hoogeveen, VVD Drenthe was able to persuade him to enter into discussions with the nomination committee. Also because he says he fits in well with the profile the VVD asked for: “A Member of Parliament who is critical, has both feet in society, has a support base in the region where he or she comes from and has to be a bit stubborn.” .”
Klok’s nomination was therefore not well received by the national party leadership. In an open letter to VVD members, the gas station owner explains why.
The selection committee gave him two reasons why he did not see himself on the list. The main ones are messages that he sent out on social media in the past. For example, Klok reportedly said on Twitter in 2011 that he had been banned from driving for speeding. Within the VVD, such incidents by candidates have a statute of limitations of five years.
In 2012, he also tweeted that he had been convicted of selling alcohol in a gas station. According to Klok, the latter would have been a test process in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health, with the approval of the VVD.
The second reason that Klok was accused of was an ‘administrative blockade’. “When I asked what that was, there was no answer,” Klok explains in the letter.
After the rejection, Klok contacted VVD chairman Eric Wetzels for further explanation, but he was none the wiser either. “I was advised to say that I was too low on the list and that I had therefore withdrawn. The reality is that I would not be on the list at all. Afraid that I would still enter the House with preferential votes. “
The Hoogeveen entrepreneur would like an explanation of his party’s choice. “No explanation is unpalatable to me. Apparently there is no room for this entrepreneur who has an opinion.” Klok will remain a member of the VVD, he says in the letter. “You will not encounter me on any other list of a political party. I will continue to vote VVD.”
Chairman of VVD Drenthe, René Laan, says he is extremely disappointed and will talk to his fellow party members at the general meeting next Saturday.