Chaotic scenes at Weiswampach municipal council on Wednesday morning, as the police were called when matters became heated during the new session.
Opposition councillor Vincent Geiben wished to add a number of points to the agenda. Municipal councillors effectively have the right of initiative, meaning they can add items to the agenda as long as they meet several conditions: they must be in writing, have concrete motives, and be tabled three days prior to the session.
When mayor Henri Rinnen moved to the second point on the agenda, Geiben accused him of not respecting the law, as he should have asked the communal council to add their points to the agenda. The meeting was then closed with the argument that Geiben's questions had not been sufficiently motivated, in accordance with legal advice, said the mayor.
Geiben then contacted an official at the Ministry of the Interior. In the meantime, two police officers appeared by request of the mayor. Geiben was said to have become insulting so the officers were called, however, the police did not have to intervene. The council then agreed to deal with the fourth of the five points that Geiben wanted to put on the agenda at the end of the session.
The meeting resumed, although tensions were high between both Rinnen and Geiben, with the mayor unable or unwilling to answer some detailed questions posed by his opponent.
A new dispute then broke out between the two prior to the vote on the lease for the land on which the new leisure centre is to be built. Geiben accused Rinnen of deliberately deceiving councillors and citizens alike. Rinnen took offence at this, stating after the session that he had been accused of issuing false building permits and accepting bribes such as a cruise in return for allowing a new floor to be added to the construction. He went on to lodge a complaint against Geiben and others for making these accusations.
Geiben said he was gathering necessary proof and had already reported a series of infractions to the Ministry of the Interior. He said he could not understand why no action had been taken.
It appears to be a classic case of one man's word against another.
Prior to the opening of the session to the public, the communal council had decided, by five votes against three, to put forward councillor Jos Vesque as new alderman to the Ministry of the Interior. He would replace Michel Deckenbrunnen after his recent resignation.https://5minutes.rtl.lu/actu/luxembourg/a/1403068.html With Vesque's departure, the opposition has lost a voice in the communal council/
