Magdeburg (dpa/sa) - In Saxony-Anhalt, the controversial AfD politician and former member of the state parliament Mario Lehmann has returned to the police service. Lehmann will be employed as an officer in the police clothing service center, a spokeswoman for the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday. The "Süddeutsche Zeitung" had previously reported on it.
The AfD man had caused a stir several times with his statements, including in the state parliament. According to media reports, in 2017 he denigrated refugees as "Ficki-Ficki-skilled workers". A year later, referring to a TV show, he spoke of "Ficki-Ficki instructions". He also accused the other parties in the state parliament of having "blood on their hands politically and symbolically" with regard to crime by refugees. Several deputies then left the plenary hall indignantly.
Green politician Sebastian Striegel criticized Lehmann's return. The domestic policy spokesman for the Greens parliamentary group also wondered why the Ministry of the Interior had not at least attempted disciplinary proceedings.
In March, in the neighboring state of Saxony, the former AfD member of the Bundestag Jens Maier was temporarily forbidden from conducting official business a few days after his return to the post of judge. "The public impression of the judge no longer makes him seem acceptable because he probably does not offer the guarantee that his office will be carried out in accordance with the constitution, impartially and unselfishly and without regard to person," the Leipzig service court decided. Maier is classified as a right-wing extremist by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Saxony.
