Wilders had suggested to Van Streen himself. He was allowed to do so because the Freedom Party became the largest party with 37 seats. Once Norwegian Refugee Council Van Strien wrote last weekend about the fraud allegations against the senator, and denied them. But on Monday, he decided to resign from his duties as a scout.
Van Strien is said to have decided in January not to say anything about the accusations against Wilders after consulting with PVV Senate President Marjolein Faber. Van Strien says this in the interview with Telegraph. “She asked me: What are you going to do? I kept her informed. She didn’t tell Gert either. In my naivety I didn’t tell Gert, but I should have.”
The senator says he spoke with Faber again when he heard in March about the report from Utrecht University, his former employer. “Our conclusion was: We will not bother Khairat with this. Let us first wait and see what happens with the report. Then nothing happened and it was never discussed again.”
Faber did not respond to questions from whom Telegraph About this issue. Van Strien himself maintains that he is innocent and says there is a “political settlement.” He says he will not resign from his position as a senator.
He is expected to become head of the PVV faction in the Senate if Faber moves to the House of Representatives. “This will continue as usual. I was elected by the Senate faction, and that is not up for discussion. I made a political mistake, but you do not resign as a senator because of that.”
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