He was the figurehead of the municipality of Sittard-Geleen for almost four decades. After a 36-year political-administrative career, Pieter Meekels will soon retire.
Meekels was no longer on the list of the GOB party during the municipal elections. In L1mburg Central, the outgoing alderman looks back on his years as a director.
‘I’d rather become alderman later’
“All in all, I look back with a satisfied feeling. Things went well, things also went wrong. In retrospect, I would rather have become alderman in the merger municipality of Sittard-Geleen later. After the reclassification in 2001, there was actually still there were three municipalities that functioned independently: Sittard, Geleen and Born. Born in particular then had the feeling of being pushed in, with all the emotions that entailed. Those sentiments are now much less, with a certain group it is still alive, but you can see that you always around reclassifications.”
large files
When asked about large files that will remain with Meekels, he ends up with the rescue of the Zuyderland hospitals (at the time Orbis in Geleen), and car manufacturer VDL Nedcar in Born. “When Mitsubishi announced that it would no longer produce cars, a tent was set up in front of the factory where the staff gathered. The emotions among the employees have strengthened me to do everything I can to maintain employment.”
VDL Nedcar
The future of VDL Nedcar is still uncertain, because there is not yet a new car model. “I still have a lot of consultations about that. I am concerned, but the signals are positive, so I am very hopeful about the future of the factory.”
Meekels is currently acting chairman of the GOB party. As soon as there is a new council, he becomes the chairman. “Now that the party has become so big, my colleagues jokingly say: if you couldn’t have done it four years earlier, we would have been so big then.”
A farewell reception was organized for Pieter Meekels on Tuesday.