People are no longer surprised, in Omtzigts old hometown of Borne. ‘Being party leader is not his primary talent’

The street in Borne where Pieter Omtzigt grew up is quiet, has six blocks of semi-detached houses and ends dead. Anke Oude Lansink (40) has been living there for a few years. She works for the Dutch Railways and is on the train to The Hague a lot. Along the way she regularly comes across Omtzigt, he gets into Enschede, his current hometown, fifteen kilometers from Borne (25,000 inhabitants). She thinks it is ‘very strong’ of him, to leave his decision from politics. « It is a tough job with a lot of expectations, so I think it is very nice that he can release this. »

« Real recovery of my burnout simply does not work, in the hectic pace of the current politics in The Hague, » Thus Omtzigt in a video message on Friday evening. « That is why I choose to put my family first and choose my own health. »

The founder of New Social Contract (NSC) lived in Borne from the age of fifth, went to the Basschool, as a high school student, he cycled to the nearby Hengelo. No less than one in three voters from Borne chose Omtzigt and his brand new party during the House of Representatives of November 2023. What do they say about his departure?

‘Very unorganized’

NSC voter Niels Abbink (39) is disappointed. « I expected more from the party. » The party won twenty seats in the Chamber but now gauges two seats. Omtzigt has « brought up many scandals, » but NSC comes over « very unorganized and not decisively. » Omtzigt’s departure does not surprise him. « It turned out that he is unable to deal with the pressure of the politics in The Hague. The pressure of leadership is disappointing. I don’t really think he is a leader. More a driver. »

Omtzigt as a ‘driver’ is a characteristic that several inhabitants of the Twente village call them as sketches. « He is a wonderful destroyer, » says eighty -year -old Jaap Verhoog, secretary of the Borns Kleinkoor. « But that is his strength and his weakness. He will be hard for something, but being a party leader is not his primary talent. »

On the Saturday market of Borne, on Rheineplein, the 65-year-old Maria and the 48-year-old Marloes stand next to their bikes in the sun-they would rather not in the newspaper for privacy reasons. They sigh deeply when they are asked about the end of Omtzigts Haagse career. « A pain point, » says Maria, « we know the family. » But it is the right choice, the two women, who used to be colleagues in education. « If it is at the expense of your health, you have to stop. We always say that in education. » But of course it is his party, says Maria, who voted for NSC. Would she vote for NSC again, this time with another party leader? « That depends on the party. They also started working with PVV » – and that too is, says Maria, « a pain. »

‘You have to grow slowly’

According to the 37-year-old Lucy, the boisterous growth of NSC led to success but also to the downfall of Omtzigts party. « It went very fast. Suddenly new people have to come. Suppose we set up a new association here in Borne, and then immediately have to involve thirty people. That doesn’t work either. You have to grow slowly. » But if everyone suddenly votes for you, you naturally also want to achieve something, says Lucy. « It is a pity that he is now gone, because it is someone with a conscience: there are also a lot of people in politics who are shouting a lot and nothing else. I think that also breaks him up. » She understands his departure. « I wouldn’t last either. »

Anke Oude Lansink regularly meets Omtzigt on the train to The Hague. About his departure: « I think it is very nice that he can let go of this. » Photo Eric Brinkhorst

Anke Oude Lansink in Omtzigts Oude Straat says they always greet each other when they meet each other on the way in the train to The Hague. « Sometimes we sat opposite each other, in the first -classoupe. But otherwise he is actually very quiet, he doesn’t really chat with people. » But yes, she adds: « On the train to The Hague I will probably not come across him that often. »

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