Christoph Thoma:

“The allegations will be cleared up”

Karlheinz Rüdisser will not resign from his post at Hypo.

(Bild: APA/Dietmar Stiplovsek)

Wirtschaftsbund director Thoma does not expect Rüdisser to be convicted. The former provincial governor also remains a member of Hypo's Supervisory Board. Governor Markus Wallner sees no need for action, but the members of the opposition parties do. 

As was announced on Monday, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Economic Affairs and Corruption has brought charges against former Provincial Councillor for Economic Affairs Karlheinz Rüdisser for embezzlement and accepting benefits. Specifically, the charges relate to Christmas dinners in 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 with an average value of around 1,900 euros per year, which were attended by around 30 to 35 people. Those responsible at the WKStA assume that Rüdisser allowed himself to be influenced in his work as a public official by the Wirtschaftsbund covering the costs of the dinners and that the Wirtschaftsbund thereby wanted to influence a public official in his work.

The current director of the Wirtschaftsbund, Christof Thoma, cannot understand the accusations against Rüdisser or the fine that the Wirtschaftsbund is supposed to pay. "We assume that these accusations will also be cleared up in the course of the further proceedings," says Thoma, referring to various other points that have already been dropped in the case.

No previous convictions
As far as Rüdisser's position on the Hypo Supervisory Board is concerned, Governor Markus Wallner sees no need for action. "There is no prior conviction, we will wait for the court hearing," he said in the press foyer on Tuesday. The Black Party's new coalition partner, FPÖ provincial party leader Christof Bitschi, also saw the court's turn. "We have agreed that the government partners will not interfere with each other when it comes to filling supervisory board positions."

The representatives of the opposition parties see the matter of the Supervisory Board mandate quite differently: on Monday and Tuesday, they unanimously called for Rüdisser's resignation from this office.