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Major Success – The County Commissioner’s Big Satire Show Now Also Known in SwitzerlandWhat is allowed in satire? – This question has been on my mind repeatedly over the past years. Satirists find it increasingly difficult to surpass real-life satire. Götz Ulrich, County Commissioner of the Burgenland district, is now known as a real-life satirist even in Switzerland. 
He made it into a lengthy article in the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. He looks kindly into the camera and equally kindly complains about the suffering he must endure as a politician. “Some want to lynch him, others call him ‘vermin’ – how a county commissioner in East Germany defies threats from right-wing extremists,” reads the headline. Feel free to click the link and read the article yourself. The NZZ article reports on how County Commissioner Ulrich naturalizes people from Vietnam, Ukraine, Syria, Russia, Afghanistan, Albania, and Iraq. He delivers a ceremonial speech on this occasion. Ulrich mentions the Berlin Wall construction and explains: “The new citizens should know that freedom is not something to be taken for granted.” As voters, they can now help ensure that this free Germany is preserved. Great! However, it is conveniently forgotten that during the “wonderful pandemic years,” the commissioner was the one imposing fines on those who took to the streets for freedom and thereby violated the regulations he had enacted. In total, €50,000 were collected. Since it is now known that all decisions by the federal government to supposedly contain the pandemic were purely political, it would surely be a recognition of the freedom struggle by the critics of these measures to refund these fines. Slovenia already did this last year after declaring the measures unconstitutional. But apparently, the commissioner’s notion of freedom does not extend that far. Maybe this is also because he doesn’t want to stand up against the ruling powers at the state and federal levels – after all, reimbursing the fines would further deepen the budget hole in the district. The NZZ article states: “As county commissioner, he is a state representative, a representative of a policy he himself is not responsible for. Neither the Chancellor, the Federal Minister of the Interior, nor any Minister-President has to manage the consequences of uncontrolled and illegal immigration locally.” 
Democracy is always a matter of interpretation. Fundamentally, it is defined as the rule of the people. Unlike Minister-Presidents, state and federal ministers, the Chancellor, and the Federal President, county commissioners are directly elected by the people. They therefore bear even greater responsibility to do what the people want. But apparently, this is seen differently. The article continues: “All of them have been burdened by the current federal government and several predecessor governments with a problem through their asylum policy that increasingly overwhelms them: in personnel, financial, and cultural terms.” It further states: “This year, accommodation costs for refugees amount to €33.5 million. The district must cover €12.5 million of that. Added to that are, among other things, health costs for over 4,500 refugees from Ukraine, for which the district must spend €1.5 million this year. Its 2024 budget deficit, already foreseeable, will be about €20 million, mainly due to expenses for refugees. This violates the municipal constitution of Saxony-Anhalt, which requires that a district maintain a balanced budget. Ulrich should now actually raise the so-called district levy. That means the municipalities would have to transfer more money so the district can fulfill its duties. But the cities and municipalities keep suing against this – and often win.” Just a thought expressed at a demonstration in Merseburg that doesn’t seem too bad: The gentleman referred to the US actions and argued that if the US bombs the Middle East to ruins, they should at least take responsibility for the refugees. Accordingly, one could clearly show the federal government that it must fully cover the costs for refugees—costs which arose due to its own policies—and not let districts and municipalities fall into debt traps. Yes, this would make the federal budget even harder to manage. So what would be the consequence?Some might cynically say that it is the job of the county commissioner, indeed all county commissioners, to put pressure on the state and federal governments to stop their warmongering and push for negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. Chancellor Scholz has even made timid hints recently. Critics would say this is two and a half years too late, especially since the current situation was foreseeable. Peace demonstrations take place every week in the Burgenland district. What a statement it would be if the commissioner elected by the citizens joined these “peace mumblers.” Other differences in opinion should play no role here. As former Chancellor Willy Brandt famously said: “Peace is not everything, but everything is nothing without peace.”But no! Commissioner Ulrich obviously prefers to manage scarcity and treat symptoms rather than address the causes. The pledge to the Basic LawAnother highlight of the naturalization ceremony is the pledge the new citizens must make: “I solemnly declare that I will respect the Basic Law and the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany and refrain from everything that could harm them.” Another great moment! Or: What is allowed in satire? What happened to this Basic Law during the pandemic years? Did anyone care? Mask mania, vaccine mania, curfews.The satire continues in the article. Commissioner Ulrich is among the few county commissioners who oblige refugees to do community service and, as recently reported in the Mitteldeutsche Zeitung, cut the minimum subsistence allowance if the work is refused. Other districts consider this unconstitutional, i.e., incompatible with the Basic Law. For Götz Ulrich, this is no problem. That he thus implements a demand of the AfD is also fine. The same party he had railed against earlier this year and protested against at demonstrations. Ignorance or incompetence?The article mentions that the federal government flew 28 criminal migrants to Kabul at the end of August. It says: “Ulrich could have nominated candidates for the flight. Among the approximately 1,300 tolerated or ‘enforceably deportable’ asylum seekers in his district are also criminal Afghans. Ulrich later informed by email that he and his administration knew nothing about the flight.” Presumably, this was not publicized beforehand because it was just a token action – the state elections in Saxony and Thuringia – something had to be done quickly.But if the law allows the return of ‘enforceably deportable’ criminal Afghans, why is no pressure applied on the deportation authorities? From personal experience, I know that, for example, the social welfare office can issue notices spontaneously within one day. If there is a will, it’s possible. Is there perhaps a lack of will? Angry lettersAnother highlight in the Swiss media: Götz Ulrich shows letters from extremely dissatisfied citizens, identified with the right-wing spectrum. Including a drawing considered a death threat. Such things are obviously not justifiable, but could it be that many people struggle with the consequences of politics and want to vent their frustration in this way? Could a county commissioner therefore repeatedly put pressure on state and federal governments? Could it be that these people had higher hopes for a county commissioner?Sanctions against those who don’t complyI myself have also had “fun” with decisions from the social welfare office, headed by County Commissioner Götz Ulrich as chief administrative officer. His social welfare office tried to reclaim over €10,000 in integration assistance from my disabled daughter because, allegedly, we did not handle the integration assistance as the office had unlawfully prescribed. Arbitrary actions are routine there; the Basic Law means nothing. Freedom? What’s that supposed to be?Okay, I assume Commissioner Ulrich is unaware of this case. So far, he has also shown no interest in such cases involving disabled people. Illegal actions within the district administration are common practice. The whole thing has been in court for years. Could the case be dismissed? Yes, the administration can decide that anytime. But it doesn’t. What was always at stake for my daughter? The right to self-determination! But that does not exist in the Burgenland district. That’s why I can only smirk when freedom and self-determination are mentioned, especially by those whose administrations actively suppress or severely restrict exactly that. Whoever doesn’t comply is sanctioned under the commissioner’s regime – whether a critic of the measures, a disabled child, or an asylum seeker. I no longer write letters to the commissioner. I gave up on that years ago. He is not a commissioner for the citizens. When his social welfare office overstepped again, I handed him a stack of documents hoping he would take care of the matter. But he said he could not intervene dictatorially in the administration. So what can he do then? Umm… Overrule fundamental rights with corona regulations? That he can! The victim roleThe article covers the AfD demonstration in Bad Bibra, which greatly troubled the commissioner. A counter-demonstration took place, attended by many comrades fighting right-wing extremism and for democracy. That democracy which, as already mentioned multiple times, played no role during the pandemic years. He speaks of intimidation attempts. What are fines if one does not comply with the commissioner’s unlawful or even unconstitutional regulations? Aren’t those intimidation tactics along the lines of: Either wear a mask, get vaccinated, obey curfews, or face fines? It’s impressive how quickly Ulrich can cast himself as a victim.The fantastic finale of the satire showThe article’s headline reads: “The county commissioner reads the Federal Minister of the Interior the riot act.” Great again! It says: “At the end of April this year, Ulrich met with the responsible minister Nancy Faeser of the SPD. On his district’s website, you can read what he told her on that occasion.” He met with the federal interior minister who had banned the Compact magazine in one fell swoop. How was it again with the Basic Law? What does it say about freedom of expression and press?Ulrich allegedly told Faeser: “The best protection for officials like him is a ‘more considerate federal policy that takes districts and municipalities as the implementation level into account and does not overwhelm them, that makes no promises for whose implementation we have neither money nor personnel resources on site.’” Wow! He really showed the Federal Minister of the Interior! Gave her a real lecture! Amazing! He seeks help from the one who clearly doesn’t care about the Basic Law. Facing the peopleThe last paragraph of the article states: “Germany’s local politicians have the greatest credibility gap of all politicians, even though they are often directly elected by citizens. Most people are disappointed by the failure of political will, which no longer expresses the needs of the population but follows the guidelines of the party hierarchy. Ulrich is no exception here. But he has to face the people every day – the office has a front row seat in everyday life, among the citizens.”This view perfectly matches my experience with the Burgenland district administration and its chief, County Commissioner Götz Ulrich. In the end, one could say: Satire out of real life could not be better. Author: AI-Translation - Michael Thurm | 18.09.2024 |
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