Frieder Otto Wolf, President of the Humanist Association of Germany, wrote to the incumbent Federal President Christian Wulff on Tuesday asking him to resign from office immediately. Frieder Otto Wolf justified the step by stating, among other things, that the Federal President will no longer be able to credibly perform the social and societal duties assigned to him in the future, nor will he be able to fulfill the obligations imposed on him for the entirety of the people of the country in addition to his constitutionally assigned functions. As “office holders, Federal Presidents are directly and absolutely dependent on being a person who is trusted, respected and held in high esteem by the majority of people in Germany”, said Wolf in his letter. An office holder is therefore obliged under all circumstances to uphold and protect the dignity of the office bestowed upon him. Federal President Christian Wulff had failed to do this. “In fact, you – certainly also in collaboration with other forces – have made it possible to damage it to a considerable extent,” Wolf said verbatim. The President of the HVD warned of the social consequences of holding on to the office despite the vehement and well-founded criticism.
“In a time of multiple crises, in which you should be acting as an indispensable integrative force that creates trust and identification, you are causing serious damage to the political consciousness of majorities of people by continuing to hold on to office despite the widespread loss of trust and considerable well-founded criticism, damage that I can hardly imagine can be repaired in the near future.”
Wolf judged this to be unacceptable. He therefore called on the Federal President to “clear the way for a rebuilding of trust and a fundamental renewal of the office of head of state and representative of the Federal Republic of Germany.”
