Which people does Omtzigt rely on? This is the hard core of his New Social Contract party

While voters still knew nothing, a group of three people walked to the notary on Saturday to set up a new party. In addition to Pieter Omtzigt, this was Dijkgraaf and former CDA MP Hein Pieper. HR CEO and business psychologist Kilian Wawoe was also at his side. They form part of the hard core of New Social Contract (NSC), Pieter Omtzigt’s new party.

Henry Piper

A prominent place in NSC has been reserved for former CDA member of parliament Hein Pieper. He has become the chairman of the new party, an extremely important position, especially for a fledgling party.

Pieper must keep the peace in NSC, ensure that the party does not grow too fast, becomes financially healthy and attracts the right people. As chairman, Pieper will have to act as a shield for Omtzigt. By appointing his confidant Pieper as an expander of the organization, Omtzigt can focus on the content.

Kilian Wawoe

Pieper is anything but alone in this monster job. A fairly unfamiliar face Peter’s posse is Kilian Wawoe. He will be given a large part of the task of recruiting talent for New Social Contract, something that Wawoe has been doing for many years.

Because Wawoe can be hired by top companies to examine the workforce. If things are not going well somewhere, Wawoe will take care of it. He already did this at companies such as ABN Amro, but also at the CDA. There he was previously given the task of making his about the candidates for the House of Representatives shine. Now he is being deployed to do that at New Social Contract.

That won’t be easy. History shows that it can be difficult for new parties to separate the wheat from the chaff. It remains to be seen whether NSC will succeed in doing so.

Eddie van Hijum

Before the summer, former CDA MP Eddy van Hijum received a call from Pieter Omtzigt. Will you participate, was the question. That bell did not completely fall from the sky. The well-known CDA face announced last year that he did not aspire to a new term as CDA deputy in Overijssel and that he no longer wanted to be on the list of candidates for the provincial elections. And now Van Hijum joins Pieter Omtzigt’s party. With this, NSC attracts an experienced politician.

Van Hijum was a member of the House of Representatives from 2003 to 2014. He was given responsibility for a range of portfolios, from Finance to Asylum and Transport, Public Works and Water Management. Van Hijum is known as a firm decision maker. With this he complements Omtzigt, who can have serious doubts from time to time.

Van Hijum also has an anything but simple job on his plate. He has to fill the gaps in the NSC election program. NSC is well on its way in a number of areas. Omtzigt has already elaborated positions on good governance, social security and Europe. It is up to Van Hijum to do that in other areas. Because what NSC stands for when it comes to matters such as asylum, climate and finance is still foggy.

Van Hijum has to swallow a bit, he tells De Telegraaf. “You notice how much hope and expectations are projected on us. Then you have to come up with a good answer. We’re going to do our very best,” he says. The former CDA member wants to come up with ‘a real story’. “There will be a solid financial paragraph. The trees no longer grow to the sky in that area.”

Ayfer Koc

Pieter Omtzigt’s support and strength is his wife Ayfer Koç. Although Omtzigt already had far-reaching plans for establishing NSC before the summer, he took the last hurdles with her and the rest of the family during a holiday.

For a long time, whether or not to set up a party was a diabolical dilemma for Omtzigt. There was no lack of ideas for a better Netherlands. But not so long ago, Omtzigt was at home with a serious burnout.

Omtzigt now looks fresh and fruity again. The ankle biter from the East is looking forward to it. He finds it difficult to let go of the accelerator every now and then. Koç can play an important role in this as a sounding board. She is also an important sparring partner in terms of content. She also comes from the CDA nest, was a municipal councilor for the CDA in Enschede for many years. Her spearheads from then are now also spearheads for NSC, such as combating poverty.

Goodbye Flyer

Philosopher, columnist and religious scholar Welmoed Vlieger has been in the inner circle from Omzigt. Omtzigt wrote the book with her A new social contract on which the name of his new party is also based.

Vlieger is of the content. She was head of policy for the one-man faction Omtzigt. She shares with Omtzigt the fierce criticism of the current board and likes to sink her teeth into topics such as poverty reduction.

Nicole van Vroonhoven

For interviews, television debates and other media appearances, journalists can turn to Nicolien van Vroonhoven. She also comes from the CDA stable. She was a member of parliament for a while, then entered the city council in The Hague and was a CDA alderman in Hilversum. In 2017 she left that position to move with her family to Australia, where her husband got a new job.

Now Van Vroonhoven is back in the Netherlands and back in politics, albeit for a position away from the spotlight. In 2022 she became a fraction employee for Pieter Omtzigt.

Matthew Punter

Anyone who inquires about Omtzigt’s core team often comes across the name of Matthijs Punter. He was one of the four founders of a support fund for Omtzigt. That support fund caused quite a surprise in April 2022, since it was four CDA members who helped CDA leaver Omtzigt raise money for his one-man faction. In addition to Punter, Hein Pieper, former Member of Parliament in Overijssel Henk Kerkdijk and Amsterdam lawyer Evelien Quist also rolled up their sleeves for the money pot.

Punter – who works as a data scientist at TNO – was a CDA board member in Overijssel. He knows other Overijssel NSC members such as Pieper like the back of his hand.