Shock in Duisburg: Raid uncovers mafia structures in the social sector!

Shock in Duisburg: Raid uncovers mafia structures in the social sector!

A year ago, a large-scale raid in Duisburg Hochheide caused a stir. 400 emergency services searched a 20-story building to check residence permits and the receipt of unauthorized social benefits. Mayor Sören Link was personally there to demonstrate the ability of the constitutional state to act. In the runoff election at the end of September, Link was re-elected with over 78 percent and is committed to tackling the growing problems with social abuse in the region. Federal Labor Minister Bärbel Bas, also from Duisburg, spoke of “mafia-like structures” in the Ruhr area that lure people from other EU states to Germany with false job promises.

The problems are big and seem to be constantly increasing. The Federal Ministry of Labor reports that reports of problems from municipalities have increased. To counteract this, Bas calls for better data exchange between different authorities such as tax offices, job centers and regulatory authorities. This could help to combat the structures of social abuse more effectively. Necessary measures were discussed at a comprehensive specialist congress entitled “Problems and solutions in connection with immigration from EU countries” in Duisburg. According to the coalition agreement, incentives that make access to social systems easier should also be reduced.

Actions against social fraud in Gelsenkirchen

While Duisburg remains the country's leader in the fight against social abuse, there is also a wave of activity in Gelsenkirchen against organized social fraud and junk real estate. The situation here is alarming: the population has fallen from 400,000 to 270,000 and many properties are empty. Criminal gangs house people from southeastern Europe in these junk properties in indignant conditions in order to make them pay. Bärbel Bas describes these machinations as “mafios” and clearly shows that these structures can no longer be tolerated.

Their first step in combating this is to buy back and demolish these junk properties in order to deprive the gangs of their business basis. In the future, a daycare center will be built for the planned demolition houses in order to improve the educational opportunities for children in the region. Gelsenkirchen has the highest unemployment rate in Germany and many citizens rely on social assistance, making the need for such measures even clearer.

Nationwide action against social abuse

The federal government is also planning comprehensive measures to combat poverty migration and social abuse by immigrants. A working group set up by Chancellor Merkel is dealing with the issue, and suggestions such as fingerprint scans to combat social abuse have also been made. Constant contentious issues, especially within the coalition, are particularly evident in the SPD and the CSU, which pursue different approaches to the issue.

The idea of ​​setting certain criteria for employment contracts to ensure that they provide a living wage is also being discussed. Interior Minister Friedrich has spoken out in favor of a quicker expulsion of EU welfare fraudsters. These developments make it clear that there is a significant need for action in Germany to sustainably address the problems that have arisen.[WDR]. Zeit](https://www.zeit.de/thema/socialabuse).