VVD figurehead Hans Wiegel has passed away at the age of 83. His family has informed De Telegraaf of this.
“We are proud of who he was and what he meant to many. For us, he is the dearest father we could have wished for,” the family says.
Wiegel passed away at home in Friesland. According to the family, he had “difficulty letting go of life”. His daughter Marieke says that Wiegel had been doing worse for some time and that he died of old age.
The current VVD leader Dilan Yesilgöz calls Wiegel on X “a great statesman who was at the basis of our people’s party”. According to her, Wiegel knew “how to make politics understandable like no other and to translate what political decisions meant for the people at home”. A man of stature and an example to us all, she says. “We will miss him”.
Wiegel was known, among other things, as chairman of the VVD parliamentary group in the 1970s. Under his leadership, the VVD grew from 16 to 28 seats.
In the Van Agt I cabinet, he was Minister of the Interior and Deputy Prime Minister. After leaving the House, Wiegel was, among other things, Queen’s Commissioner in Friesland and a member of the Senate.
Night of Wiegel and ‘Sinterklaas Exists’
As a member of the Senate, Wiegel was also responsible for what has become known as the Night of Wiegel. After a sixteen-hour debate about a corrective referendum, he was the only member of his group to vote against that referendum, which ultimately caused the bill to fail.
Wiegel was also the man behind the now-famous statement “Sinterklaas exists. There he is”. With that, Wiegel pointed to the plans of the Den Uyl cabinet, which, according to him, was throwing too much money away.
In later life, Wiegel remained politically involved as an honorary member of the VVD. He also wrote columns for De Telegraaf for many years.