Fresh allegations
January 15, 2012
Germany's embattled President Christian Wulff faced fresh allegations on Sunday over claims the Berlin film producer David Groenewold paid a portion of his hotel bill during a visit to Munich's annual Oktoberfest.
Groenewold invited the president to the festival while he was serving as state premier in Lower Saxony, German news magazine Der Spiegel has reported. The film producer claims to have then contributed to the couple's bill, paying the difference between money left by Wulff and the actual cost of the luxury suite, which had been upgraded to accommodate the unexpected arrival of the president's wife, Bettina, and child.
Wulff's lawyer has insisted that his client was billed for the room at the Bayerischer Hof hotel. He later charged it to the state chancellery and Lower Saxony's Christian Democratic Union party as he had further official appointments in Munich, the lawyer told the journal.
Groenewold's lawyer asserted in Germany's Bild am Sonntag newspaper on Sunday that the president knew nothing of the additional costs.
"In order for Mr. Wulff to be placed in a better room, my client paid 200 euro ($253) per night for two nights, totaling 400 euro," he said. Groenewold himself had proposed a room exchange, so that Wulff and his family could have the larger room.
Resignation demands
The German president has been under fire in recent weeks over his financial dealings with a series of wealthy businessmen. He has faced growing pressure to step down since it emerged that he failed to declare a private loan when he was state premier of Lower Saxony in 2008. He is reported to have received the loan in the form of a 500,000 euro ($636,000) check.
Last week, protesters calling for his resignation gathered outside the president's official residence shouting "Wulff must go!" and waved shoes above their heads in a sign of disrespect common in the Arab world.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel reiterated her support of the president Sunday, but called on Wulff to provide transparent explanations to allegations.
"The esteem with which his work is regarded and the answers he gives to questions are inextricably linked," she told German radio Deutschlandfunk.
"When new questions arise, the president will answer them," she said. "Many of those questions which have already been asked have, to a large extent, been answered."
Author: Charlotte Chelsom-Pill (dpa, Reuters, dapd, AFP)
Editor: Martin Kuebler