World News | Finland’s populist appoints economy minister to replace cabinet member who resigns over far-right ties

HELSINKI, July 5 (Xinhua) — A populist party in Finland’s recently formed right-wing coalition government elected a new economy minister on Wednesday to replace a cabinet member who resigned last week over alleged links to far-right circles and Nazi remarks.

Wille Rydman, 37, was “unanimously” chosen for the post, the Finns Party said in a statement. Redman has been a member of the Finnish legislature Eduskunta since 2015 and a member of the Helsinki City Council since 2012.

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Since 2007 he has been involved in national politics in the ranks of Finland’s main conservative National Coalition Party, a senior partner in the current government led by Prime Minister Petteri Olpo, who is now the chairman of the National Union Party.

However, Lederman joined the nationalist Finns Party in early January after he was expelled from the Communist Party of Finland last year over allegations of molesting and having inappropriate relationships with young women and girls.

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The case sparked a police investigation and he was later cleared of wrongdoing.

“I wasn’t prepared for something like this. I had mixed feelings,” Lederman told Finnish public broadcaster YLE after being picked on Wednesday. “I accept this challenge with a somewhat heavy heart because my good friend Vilhelm Junnila has just resigned from this position. In my opinion, he had to resign due to inappropriate and stigmatizing remarks.”

Economic Affairs Minister Vilhelm Junnila said on Friday he would resign, in part because of a speech he gave at a far-right commemorative event in the western city of Turku in 2019, which There was an uproar on social media after he took office. ministerial positions.

Junila, who survived a no-confidence vote in parliament earlier this month, also reportedly made inappropriate references to Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany on several occasions.

With just 17 days in office, Junila will be the second-shortest serving cabinet member in Finnish history.

President Sauli Niinisto will formally appoint Lederman on Thursday.

The Finns Party decided that Lederman would serve as economy minister for two years before handing over the post to his party colleague Sakari Puisto for a further two years.

Olpo’s four-party coalition government was sworn in on June 20 in what political analysts say is Finland’s most conservative cabinet since World War II. (Associated Press)

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