Clarification required: Jusos criticize Mayor Buchholz and Anja Franke!

Clarification required: Jusos criticize Mayor Buchholz and Anja Franke!

In Mülheim an der Ruhr the waves are high: The Jusos are demanding a comprehensive investigation into the Franke case, which revolves around the councilor Anja Franke. Mayor Marc Buchholz (CDU) has challenged the trust in the head of the department for law and public security. He makes it clear that important information was withheld from Franke, which is putting a significant strain on the situation in the administration. Juso chairman Niklas Hammacher sums it up: “The public has a right to transparency” and sharply criticizes Franke’s behavior.

But that's not all. The head of the department is not only in the firing line because of her information policy, but is also exposed to internal accusations regarding her leadership skills. The chairman of the staff council confirmed that the issue surrounding Franke's leadership style had already been a topic of discussion with Buchholz. Her recent decisions have now meant that she could lose responsibility for digitalization, having already been removed from human resources at the end of 2024.

The financial aspects of the case

The financial consequences of Anja Franke's work as a department head are considerable. Since she took office on January 2, 2023, the city has already spent almost 400,000 euros on her position. In addition, the forecast predicts that additional costs of over 650,000 euros will be incurred by 2030, without taking into account the annual salary increases. Juso vice-president Paula Bakum uses these numbers to expose a failure in the black-green coalition's personnel policy.

The situation is becoming increasingly critical for Buchholz, as the additional person in administration is perceived as a burden. Anja Franke is trying to remain in her position until 2030, but whether this will become a reality is questionable. With Ruhrfibre withdrawing from cooperation with the city, trust seems to be dwindling further. Ruhrfibre has so far connected 70,000 households to the fiber optic network.

The fiber optic expansion in Essen

But while Mülheim is struggling with internal problems, there is positive news from Essen, where Margarethenhöhe will soon be fully connected to Ruhrfibre's fiber optic network. For this purpose, a contract was signed in cooperation with the Margarethe Krupp Foundation, which guarantees residents fast internet for around 3,100 apartments and 60 commercial units. Ruhrfibre plans to connect 150,000 households in Essen over the next few years, thereby creating the conditions for a digital future.

These developments show how important digitalization is today. The Online Access Act (OZG) has created awareness of the need, but internal administrative processes also need to be optimized. Holistic organizational management is proposed as the key to increasing administrative efficiency and overcoming the challenges of staff shortages and demographic change. Clear structures are crucial in order to increase the administration's ability to act and to continuously improve processes.

Overall, Mülheim and Essen are currently facing different challenges and opportunities, with developments in digitalization clearly becoming more important. It remains to be seen whether the Jusos and the city of Mülheim will find their way out of their crisis.

For further information about the events surrounding Anja Franke, read the article Lokalklick.eu. You can find out more about the fiber optic expansion in Essen at evv-essen.de, and for the topic of digitalization in administration, visit blog.ibo.de.