There is a curious political conflict underway, and N-TV gave an update today, which I will try to simplify in nature.
Between 1982 and 1998, Helmet Kohl was Chancellor of Germany (CDU Party). At the final year, a scandal came up. What I'll say over the scandal (probably deserves sixty lines)....is that a company needed a 'favor' done (non-German company). Kohl's party arranged for the 'favor' (related to oil/fuel). Kohl took the money and sent it to a non-German bank (yes, hiding it) and then used the money on CDU candidates that he favored but were hindered by lack of funds. The non-German account was figured out, and things were dragged enough that he wasn't fired.
As far as I know...not a pfennig of the money ever was spent on Kohl himself. He spent it on the party....as crazy as it sounds.
At the conclusion of this mess....it's safe to say that Kohl was 'toxic' and probably the next ten guys after him at least knew of the account/purpose....were dragged down.
A new CDU leadership came into place, and they more or less 'disrespected' Kohl and his legacy (at least in his mind).
After he left office (within 3 years), his wife committed suicide (over health issues, not the scandal).
He remarried in 2008 (younger gal, 44 years old). In the nine years that passed.....Kohl gave her various instructions upon his passing.
To put this in a simple way.....he didn't want the CDU Party or any of their 'helpers' to be handling his papers. Nothing was to be handed to the historical crowd, period.
In the last year, the Bundestag passed legislation creating a Helmet Kohl Foundation, and their hope was that the Kohl papers (literally everything he wrote from day of his political career)....would go into this achieve.
Well....as N-TV told the story today.....this business of the Foundation is going to court, because a Kohl Foundation already exists and is run by the widow. She has all the letters signed by Kohl to appoint her in charge of the papers, and the legacy business.
The court system? I suspect that they are going back over the past hundred years....looking for a similar case, and I doubt there is one.
Kohl's blunt point? He didn't want anyone crapping over his legacy. So only papers that fit the Kohl legacy 'model' will be allowed in some public forum. Based on journalistic chatter.....the widow should be described as a tough gal, and not likely to be pushed around. If the court were to say the papers must all be turned over to the Bundestag Kohl Foundation? It wouldn't shock me if she burnt the whole collection to preserve the legacy he intended.
All of this from the way he was treated after the scandal? Yeah.
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