A German Politician Accuses the Health Minister of Lack of Transparency in Mask Procurement
The leader of the Green Party’s parliamentary group, Britta Haßelmann, has criticized the German Health Minister, Nina Warken, for a lack of transparency in the procurement of masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Haßelmann expressed her concerns in an interview with the Funke-Mediengruppe, a German media group, stating that the minister’s actions are reminiscent of a “salamitactic” approach, where the investigation report is only shared with the budget committee and heavily redacted.
Haßelmann believes that every new revelation in the “mask scandal” surrounding former Health Minister Jens Spahn, now the leader of the CDU parliamentary group, emphasizes the need for a comprehensive and transparent investigation. She claims that billions of euros of taxpayers’ money were wasted and that contracts may have been awarded to personal networks, while ignoring the advice of experts in the ministry.
Lobbycontrol, a non-profit organization advocating for transparency in politics, also criticized the Health Minister’s actions, saying that the report should be made public in its entirety. The organization’s spokesperson, Aurel Eschmann, stated that the report’s redactions only serve to protect personal information and business secrets and that there is no apparent reason for the report to be classified as a secret document.
Eschmann added that the public’s trust in politics has been severely shaken by the mask scandal and that the new information will likely further damage the reputation of Jens Spahn. He also criticized the government’s stance on anti-corruption efforts, as Germany recently blocked a central anti-corruption directive at the EU level.
The Health Minister initially refused to share the report with the Bundestag’s budget committee, but has since relented, with the committee to receive the document, albeit with redactions.