Aiwanger on Merz statements: “The facts are really like that”

dpa Aiwanger on Merz statements: “The facts are really like that” Article by dpa • 5 hours Bavaria's Economics Minister Hubert Aiwanger largely agreed with CDU leader Friedrich Merz after his controversial statements about health services for asylum seekers. “That is of course a bit exaggerated and flippantly worded and it arouses people’s minds,” said the head of the Free Voters on the television station “Welt-TV” on Friday. “But the reality is that many people are in our social security funds or have access to our social security funds and medical care, which cost us a lot of money.” Merz had called on the federal government to make a drastic comparison to curb irregular migration. “They will go crazy, the people, when they see that 300,000 asylum seekers have been rejected, not leaving the country, getting full benefits, getting full medical care,” said Merz in “Welt-Talk”. “They sit at the doctor and have their teeth changed, and the German citizens next door don’t get any appointments.” The SPD and the Greens then accused him of populism. Bavaria's deputy prime minister, however, agreed with Merz. “First of all, there are actually hundreds of thousands of people in Germany illegally,” said Aiwanger. “Of course, these people need medical care and then stand in the way of other treatments.” However, refusing treatment as a consequence would be “inhumane”. His solution is to “not let so many people into the country at all”. In addition, Germany is too generous in its benefits for asylum seekers, said Aiwanger. He called for the amount of cash paid out per month for asylum seekers to be reduced.