Rumst –
A rhyme from the mayor of Rumst Mayor Jurgen Callaerts (N-VA) on Facebook caused many reactions on Saturday, many of which were positive. The message refers to canceled festivals with a sneer at Minister Bart Somers (Open Vld).
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Mayor Jurgen Callaerts posted a striking message on Facebook on Saturday. “Once upon a time there were two village chiefs who didn’t believe in Tomorrowland this year. Somers thought that was heated, Pukkelpop could do it too. Anyone heard Bart now that they turned off the lights in Hasselt?”
His comment refers to the decision of him and his Boom colleague Jeroen Baert (N-VA) not to let the Tomorrowland festival take place. It was Flemish Minister of the Interior Bart Somers (Open Vld) who then tried to undo the decision from the Rupel region.
“Ironically intended”
The mayor of Rumst himself does not describe his doggerel on Facebook as poisonous. “In this case it is meant to be ironic”, says Callaerts. “I often use rhymes. Not immediately on social media, but for example at weddings in the town hall.”
“But it is true that we were called to Minister Somers with the intention of going back on our refusal to let the Tomorrowland festival go ahead. However, we held our ground because it was organizationally impossible to meet the requirements. That eventually became clear to the organizers of Pukkelpop.”
Callaerts describes the period after their decision as extremely hectic. “We received a lot of negative reactions at the time, but fortunately also a lot of support from the local population. So I’m delighted that many now on Facebook are describing our decision as brave and right.”
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