A member of the far-right party that won the elections in the Netherlands resigned this Monday from his role as negotiator for the formation of a new government coalition, due to accusations of fraud.
Impeachment could spark a political crisis, affecting the process of creating a new government even before the negotiation process has begun.
Gom van Strien of Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party (PVV) was appointed last week to negotiate possible coalitions.
This Monday he should have met with Geert Wilders and other party leaders, but the meetings were cancelled.
Van Strien, named directly by the far-right leader, was accused last weekend by the Dutch press of having committed fraud in a company he owned.
Despite denying irregularities, he issued a statement stating that “the turmoil that the matter has aroused” makes work on the formation of a possible government coalition difficult.
According to the American news agency Associated Press, Van Strien is “an experienced but little-known politician.”
Van Strien was tasked with drawing up a list of possible coalitions and presenting a report to the lower house of parliament in early December so that parliamentarians could debate the issue on December 6.
Wilders’ PVV was the winner of last week’s Dutch elections, a shift to the far right in Dutch politics that sent shockwaves across Europe.
Expectations of quickly forming a center-right coalition suffered a setback last week, when the new leader of outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s center-right party ruled out the possibility of a coalition with the PVV.
Van Strien’s resignation highlights one of the main problems that Wilders may face in the coming weeks, as new MPs take their seats in Parliament: a lack of political experience.
The PVV has always been very focused on the figure of Wilders, who is one of the few publicly known faces of the party.
Source: TSF
