Special Committee Extended

The FPÖ Annoyed the People’s Party with This Move

FPÖ Secretary-General Christian Hafenecker annoyed the ÖVP by holding a press conference right in front of the turquoise party headquarters.(Bild: Imre Antal)

The FPÖ caused a stir with an appearance right in front of the ÖVP party headquarters: At a press conference, it announced that it would extend the Pilnacek investigative committee by three months. To prevent the ÖVP from blocking the event, the FPÖ pulled a trick out of its bag.

“This is an unusual move,” said Christian Hafenecker at the start of his press conference. The event had actually been scheduled for Tuesday but had to be postponed. The FPÖ ultimately invited media representatives to gather on Wednesday under the slogan “ÖVP: The truth is just around the corner!”—provocatively right in front of the ÖVP party headquarters on Lichtenfeldgasse in Vienna.

FPÖ Registered a “Rally”
Of course, there was little joy at ÖVP headquarters. But the party’s hands were tied, as the FPÖ had pulled a trick out of its bag. Specifically, it had registered the press conference in advance as an official rally. According to information from the “Krone,” the fact that the event had to be postponed by one day was, incidentally, less due to “health reasons,” as the FPÖ claimed, and more because the Vienna State Parliament was in session. And while the State Parliament is in session, outdoor rallies are prohibited within a 300-meter radius of Vienna City Hall. Registration does not change this. Section 7 of the Assembly Act governs this “restricted zone.”

The FPÖ chose an unusual location for its press conference.(Bild: Imre Antal)

(Bild: Imre Antal)

This allowed the FPÖ’s Secretary-General, media spokesperson, and leader of the parliamentary group on the investigative committee, Christian Hafenecker, to announce undisturbed that the FPÖ would submit a one-quarter motion to extend the Pilnacek investigative committee: “This is necessary because the ÖVP once again believes it can shirk its responsibility,” said Hafenecker, who criticized the fact that ÖVP representatives such as Governor Karoline Edtstadler and former Chancellor Karl Nehammer are failing to comply with their summons to appear before the investigative committee.

Three More Months for the Investigative Committee
Just a few weeks ago, Hafenecker had considered an extension possible in principle, but at that time it was not yet concretely foreseeable. The investigative committee was actually supposed to conclude its work on November 3. However, Hafenecker had words of praise for current Federal Chancellor Christian Stocker, noting that “it must be credited to him that, unlike his colleagues, he is appearing before the investigative committee today for questioning.”

The investigative committee will now continue for three more months; any further extension would require a simple majority—which the FPÖ does not have on its own. The next step is to draw up a new schedule and clarify when the next sessions are to take place, explains the FPÖ politician.