ÖVP club director Wöginger under charge: political support remains!

ÖVP club director Wöginger under charge: political support remains!

Braunau, Österreich - The ÖVP club director August Wöginger, also known as "Gust", faces serious charges. The Economic and Corruption Prosecutor has accused him of an accusation that relates to a suspected intervention in 2017 when filling a board of the Braunau, Ried and Schärding. As reports oe24.at, Wöginger is obviously very popular in the ÖVP, which results in a big backing in the party.

This support ranges to Chancellor Christian Stocker, who is also behind him. Despite the indictment, the ÖVP assumes that Wöginger will keep his position. The opposition, represented by the parties red and pink, has so far only practiced reserved criticism.

indictment for abuse of office

The indictment against Wöginger not only includes him, but also two civil servants. They are accused of being biased in the position of a function in the tax office, and that they have preferred a less qualified candidate for party political reasons. This happened despite the higher suitability of other competitors. According to [justiz.gv.at] (https://www.justiz.gv.at/wksta/wirtschafts-und- corruption prosecutor's office/Medentellungen/pressemitteigteilungen-2025/verfahrenskomplex-casklage-anklage-anklage-sklage-suschmungs-bei-bei-bei.html) classified because he supposedly influenced the decisions.

An important aspect of the procedure is that Wöginger contact with MMAG. Thomas Schmid, the former cabinet manager and general secretary in the Ministry of Finance, took up to support his position. Schmid is also accused of influencing one of the co -accused officials. In the investigation, violations of the equal treatment requirement were determined, which were confirmed by the Federal Equal Treatment Commission and the Federal Administrative Court.

political implications

Wöginger's position as part of the black-red-pink coalition is considered essential. He supposedly rejected a pact with FPÖ boss Herbert Kickl, which underlines its importance within the government coalition. Even in the event of a conviction, the ÖVP is expected that Wöginger is held under the given circumstances, which could be due to his long experience as a club chief.

This corruption affair comes at a critical time for Austria, which was classified by Transparency International (Ti) with 67 out of 100 points and 25th place in the 2024 corruption perception index. This has been the worst value since the start of the surveys, with Austria falling behind other European countries. The TI-Austria CEO Bettina Knötzl described the negative trend as "shameful" and attributed it to political scandals and repeated cases of friendship economy. As reports Kurier.at, there is a great need for changes in the political culture of the country.

The corruption perception index shows that Austria, given the deficits found in the fight against corruption and the lack of an independent issue of instructions for public prosecutors, urgently needs a reform. In an appeal to the government, it is challenged to strengthen media independence and to create better protection for the whistle.