Lots of people don’t have integrity

Mills took office in the run-up to the 2021 parliamentary elections. In an internal farewell letter to sections of Bij1, she openly criticized the party. She writes that it is “full of toxicity, nepotism, and contradictions.” Similar voices were heard at the departure of Quincy Garrio, who was expelled from the party in July 2021.

“I’ve seen members want justice until a fair decision doesn’t suit them. These members want a flat organization, but they never want to be held accountable for their behavior. And so,” Mills says in her email. As a black woman, I have not been approached and treated in such disrespect, not with integrity/honesty or gratuitousness, all under the guise of criticism. Let this sink in for a while.

In a brief initial response, the National Party said it was “overwhelmed by” Mills’ decision, but respected that.

Mills: It’s “unfair” what’s going on inside the party

On Saturday 2 July, it will be decided during the general meeting of Bij1 members who will be the new head of the party. The elections will take place between Jursica Mills and Rebecca Timmer. Temer was also a former board member, but withdrew in February, in part because she did not agree with the party’s course.

However, she recently re-applied for the position of party chief, despite a negative recommendation from the selection committee. She has a large number of followers on social media and through a personal call She asks members to vote for her. There Timmer writes, among other things, that politics in Big 1 is not about “ego or status.” “But do the necessary things regardless of whether you are thanked or not.”

In response to this paper, Mills said it was not about the conflict between her and Timmer. “It’s about Rebekah. She received negative advice from the selection committee, but she persevered anyway. I find the way the members handle this attack. If the lesser known members receive negative advice, that’s fine. But with Rebekah, people will take action.”

The Bij1 faction in Utrecht, among others, sent a newsletter to members calling for Timmer’s support. Notable Bij1 members on Twitter and Instagram also support her. Temer has a strong relationship with party leader Sylvana Simmons, who works for her in the House.

Mills describes what is happening within the party as “unfair”. Mills: “While we are striving for radical equality, we sometimes have to adjust our behavior for the sake of equality. You should extend that to all our actions, even if you feel uncomfortable. Many people in the party have no integrity. I am very disappointed” .

Rebecca Timmer now says she wants to first consult the party before she responds.

successive struggles

In addition to the aforementioned rupture with Garrio, there are more frequent (and imminent) conflicts within the relatively young party. After Garrio was expelled, the Hague circuit was cut short with the national Bij1. Last month, the Amsterdam branch threatened to split into two camps, but at the general meeting of members, the mood calmed again. The consequences of Mills’ resignation on the battle for trends within Big 1 remain unclear at the moment.

An earlier version of this article stated that Mills’ email had been sent to members. This is not true: it is about an email sent to Bij1 departments.