Allegations of Sham Employment
Job with AfD Politician: State Parliament Halts Payments for 85-Year-Old - AfD Lawmaker Faces Scrutiny Over Elderly Employee's Suspicious Salary Payments
Did a state lawmaker employ an 85-year-old woman purely for show? A Der Spiegel report alleging just that has now triggered consequences.
The North Rhine-Westphalia state parliament has temporarily halted reimbursement of salary payments for an 85-year-old employee of AfD lawmaker Klaus Esser. According to the parliamentary administration, the move follows a Spiegel investigation that raised questions about whether the elderly woman's employment was a sham.
"The recent reporting on the lawmaker's staffing arrangements has prompted André Kuper, president of the state parliament, to send a formal letter requesting an explanation from Klaus Esser," a parliamentary spokesperson told the German Press Agency (dpa). "The lawmaker has been asked to provide a statement regarding the employment relationship in question."
Kuper informed Esser that "until the matter is clarified, reimbursement of the employee's salary by the parliamentary administration will be suspended."
In principle, the parliament noted, hiring staff is solely the responsibility of individual lawmakers. However, it added: "Reimbursement for payments to an employee who provides no actual work is not permissible. If no work is performed, no reimbursement can be issued."
Parliamentary President Kuper stated: "I expect every member of parliament to handle taxpayer funds responsibly. Funding for staff is intended exclusively to support parliamentary work—not for any other purpose. Any doubt about the lawful use of public money in hiring employees must be ruled out."
In its Thursday report, Der Spiegel revealed that Esser employs a woman born in 1940 who is also the wife of another AfD member. The magazine questioned whether the senior citizen was genuinely performing any work.
Esser dismissed the allegations in comments to dpa, insisting his employee is "mentally very sharp" and prepares parliamentary questions and motions from her home office. "Society and parliament talk so much about including older people—yet when you put it into practice, suddenly it's supposed to be wrong," he said.
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