Top Drenthe official resigns over sister-in-law’s design contract

DutchNews, March 2, 2017

The property in question. Photo: Ronn via Wikimedia Commons

The king’s commissioner in Drenthe, Jacques Tichelaar, has resigned after admitting putting forward his sister in law to redevelop a listed building in Assen, despite earlier denying the claim. 

Tichelaar, a former Labour MP and current chair of the provincial council, said on Wednesday evening he is standing down after having lost the trust of councillors. 

‘Trust is necessary to do a good job and I do not think I have that trust sufficiently,’ he said. ‘That is why I am stepping down with immediate effect. 

Tichelaar told local television station RTV Drenthe last week that a civil servant had approached his sister in law, who runs design studio Klinkenberg-SO, about the project. 

However, earlier this week, the Volkskrant newspaper obtained a copy of a letter which Tichelaar had written to the provincial authority admitting having favoured his relative.