No 78 - 'The resignation of President Wulff and its consequences'

Institute for Western Affairs' Bulletin (No. 78/2012): dr Piotr Kubiak - 'The resignation of President Wulff and its  consequences'

The  President of the Federal Republic of Germany Christian Wulff announced his resignation from office at the special press conference held at 11:00 on the 17 February 2012. In his statement  he emphasised that: „Our country, the Federal Republic of Germany, needs a president who can devote himself completely to national and international challenges. Germany needs a president who enjoys the trust of not only a majority, but a broad majority of  citizens. The developments of the past few days and weeks have shown that this trust and, thus, my effectiveness have been seriously damaged. (...) For this reason I am resigning today from the presidency in order to swiftly free the way for my successor”. So, why did people lose trust in president C. Wulff and what lied at the root of such a dramatic decision?