Revealed in Tyrol

ÖVP taps into provincial companies via party newspaper

FP leader Markus Abwerzger and Liste Fritz club chairman Markus Sint pushed through an audit by the provincial court of auditors in 2022: The result shows that the ÖVP regularly asks state companies to pay.

(Bild: Neuner Philipp)

Donations and sponsorship activities of state-affiliated companies to political parties are a hot potato. A provincial audit office report in Tyrol now shows why: only one party received the biggest slice of the cake.

State energy supplier Tiwag and its five subsidiaries, Hypo Bank AG, Tirol Kliniken, Verkehrsverbund Tirol, Lebensraum Holding with its subsidiaries Tirol Werbung and Agrarmarketing, Tigewosi and state museums are united by one particular preference - and that is the ÖVP.

Farmers' newspaper as a vehicle
As a report by the provincial court of auditors has now revealed, a total of 1.725 million euros flowed to the Tyrolean ÖVP and its affiliated organizations between 2008 and 2022. This mainly took the form of advertisements in the Tyrolean farmers' newspaper. It raked in €1.4 million in advertising money during the period mentioned, around €100,000 per year.

Seek and ye shall find. Nothing that has happened is a coincidence. This is the ÖVP system. And the vehicle for this is the Tiroler Bauernzeitung.

Liste-Fritz-Klubobmann Markus Sint

SPÖ 0.2%, the rest went away empty-handed
"99.8 percent of this expenditure went to the ÖVP, only 0.2 percent to the SPÖ," said FP leader Markus Abwerzger and Liste Fritz club chairman Markus Sint on Monday, presenting the results of the audit by the provincial audit office, which they had jointly initiated in December 2022. In terms of volume, the JVP was the second largest beneficiary with €143,000, followed by four other sub-organizations (€79,000) and a political academy (€23,500). Sub-organizations received 2400 euros in donations.

Agrarmarketing puts Tiwag in the shade
The major advertiser was the financially strong Tiwag with €473,000, which it distributed to almost all of the eleven organizations mentioned in the report. However, Tiwag was far overshadowed by Agrarmarketing Tirol GmbH, which had 1.127 million euros to spend on advertisements and sponsorship.

It would never occur to me to tap into provincial companies for an FPÖ party newspaper. That is moral corruption.

FP-Chef Markus Abwerzger

All in addition to high party funding
"All in all, this is a mockery for the taxpayers who have to pay for it - in addition to the already high level of party funding we have in Tyrol," said FP leader Abwerzger. "This proves that the ÖVP can't handle money. They go over the top time and time again when it comes to election campaign costs - and not just a little, but a lot, as was recently shown again in Innsbruck." What annoyed him most, however, was that the ÖVP showed "zero understanding" in the finance committee when the report was debated: "They won't change anything about the politically immoral party funding. All parties have learned something from Ibiza, except one," said Abwerzger, referring to the strictest compliance guidelines that now prevail in his party.

"Lack of awareness of injustice"
"It is actually frightening that there is zero awareness of wrongdoing in the ÖVP," LA Sint also criticized, "they clearly say that the sponsorship complies with corporate guidelines. But who decides the statutes? The ÖVP," Sint clearly pointed out.

In the July state parliament, which starts on Wednesday, an urgent motion is to prohibit state-affiliated and state-owned companies from giving donations, advertisements and sponsorships to parties and party-affiliated organizations.

(Bild: Birbaumer Christof)

Consequences demanded
The consequence of the incidents can only be: "An absolute ban on donations and sponsoring - and immediately." FP and Liste Fritz are submitting an urgent motion in the upcoming state parliament: State-affiliated and state-owned companies should be prohibited from giving donations, advertisements and sponsorships to parties and party-affiliated organizations.

No compliance guidelines
Compliance guidelines are also required, "because it's not always just about the monetary benefit. It's also not about the amount. It's about the system".

Compared to the total expenditure on advertising and advertisements, only a small proportion went to the farmers' newspaper.

VP-Klubobmann Jakob Wolf 

ÖVP speaks of "party political skirmishes"
On the day of the presentation of the provincial audit office report, the ÖVP also reacted: "The report shows that all payment flows are documented accordingly and are in line with the guidelines of the respective companies," said VP parliamentary group chairman Jakob Wolf. "As far as the opposition's criticism is concerned, I refer on the one hand to the well thought-out communication strategy of the companies in question and on the other hand to the results and conclusions of the audit report. Anyone who wants to communicate explicitly to farmers in a target group-specific manner, for example, will sensibly place advertisements in the farmers' newspaper because it is ultimately the medium that is delivered to almost all farming households in Tyrol at regular intervals. The advertising prices are also absolutely in line with the market, as a comparison of rates shows," emphasizes the VP Club Chairman.

"Only a small slice of the cake"
For the provincial Court of Audit, all audited advertisements are "absolutely plausible" and are "not criticized". Anyone who "carefully studies" the Court of Audit report will quickly realize "that compared to the total expenditure on advertising and advertisements, only a tiny 0.6% went to the farmers' newspaper".

"Good advice" at the end
Wolf: "The opposition is once again losing itself in political banter and overlooking the real concerns of the population. Instead of allying himself with the right-wing populists and further promoting disenchantment with politics in the country with such accusations, Markus Sint should rather use 0.6 percent of his income for a good cause."