CSU conference during lockdown hints at double standards

The Munich CSU is setting a new standard in the corona crisis according to the Bavarian newspaper SZ. However, it is perhaps not one it should be proud of. More quickly than any or hardly any other major political party in the Bavaria, it is coming together for a party conference on a Thursday evening during the second lockdown. Just under 100 people are to meet in a hall on the Nockherberg. There is a hygiene concept in force, and the district administration department has approved the meeting, according to information from the CSU.

But even if everything is legally correct, the signal to the citizens is a a contradiction: the party of the always strict and admonishing Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) adheres to different standards than that which it tries to enforce on everyone else, destroying livelihoods and businesses in the process. And this at a time when the virus figures have dropped to a reassuring level, but still no Munich resident is allowed to meet privately with more than one friend.

If the CSU had critically important actions to perform, then a face-to-face meeting could maybe be argued for. On Thursday evening, however, there are two items on the agenda of the party conference that certainly do not fall into this category: the early election of a new district chairman and a new deputy. This is especially true because the regular term of office ends in the summer anyway and the election of the entire district executive board is then due.

Munich CSU leader Ludwig Spaenle had already announced at the end of September that he wanted to quit prematurely. However, the corona virus prevented the planned election of his previous deputy Georg Eisenreich as his successor. Why this is so urgent at the moment is not clear, but reeks of double standards and an arrogant display from local politicians. Eisenreich can also lead the association as deputy, plan the federal election campaign and make internal decisions in coordination with Spaenle. Some people are already calling the Bavarian justice minister the secret head of the district anyway, ever since Ludwig Spaenle was first kicked out of the cabinet and then out of the state parliament in 2018.

As businesses, students, and individuals all struggle with the ramifications of Söder's extensive and hyper-enthusiastic lockdown measures, there is growing anger at the damage his party and politicians have done to the economy; all the while keeping themselves securely employed and adhering to a set of rules which many believe as running counter to the spirit of the rules they enforce on everyone else.

Image by Josef A. Preiselbauer