Open Letter to Dr. Jendrik Suck (CDU)

To:

CDU Parliamentary Group in the Dortmund City Council
Dr. Jendrik Suck
Friedensplatz 1
44135 Dortmund

Dear Dr. Suck,

The Wilo Group is committed to political neutrality. However, in your letter published yesterday, which appears to be a response to the opinion expressed by Dr.-Ing. E. h. Jochen Opländer on 22 August 2025, in the Dortmund edition of the Ruhr Nachrichten, you directly address the Wilopark as a construction project. As CEO of the Wilo Group, I feel compelled to respond to you in this manner.

One of the fundamental principles of our democracy is the right to freedom of expression – an entitlement granted to honorary citizens of the city of Dortmund as well as to every other citizen. It is therefore entirely legitimate for Dr. Opländer to address the people of Dortmund in a personal letter.

I, too, am exercising my right to freedom of expression to respond to your crude and transgressive letter, and to correct some of your distorted interpretations. The fact that you were provoked by Dr. Opländer’s letter – which does not mention the Dortmund CDU even once – and felt compelled to issue such an outrageous response is, in itself, revealing.

Do you feel personally addressed by the criticism expressed in the letter – did Dr. Opländer strike a nerve? Be that as it may, your letter demands clarification. I cannot comment on all the impertinences, so I will limit myself to two particularly striking points at the beginning of your letter. The childish reference to the film Batman and Gotham City shows that you do not seem to take the fears, concerns, and needs of the people of Dortmund seriously. But the peak is your claim that Dr. Opländer’s opinion “evokes memories of Elon Musk’s interference” – a man who openly supports the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD).

As chairman of the CDU parliamentary group in the Dortmund city council, you should be aware that Dr. Opländer has repeatedly – and most recently, implicitly, in his letter of 22 August 2025 – clearly positioned himself against the AfD. Comparing a 94-year-old man, who has personally experienced the horrors of right-wing extremist politics and who has dedicated his life to democracy and the rule of law both within and outside Dortmund, publicly to Elon Musk is outrageous.

Less impertinent, but shockingly undifferentiated, is your apparent confusion of cause and effect at the end of your self-righteous letter. Your letter suggests that Dr. Opländer owes thanks to the Dortmund city council for granting him honorary citizenship. The truth is: the council awarded him this honor because it feels indebted to him – and rightly so.

Dr. Opländer has made significant contributions to the economic and cultural development of the city. Honorary citizenship is recognition of a lifetime achievement. Its conferral should not, as you suggest, result in the honoured individual remaining silent out of gratitude to the city council. On the contrary: in my view, it is the duty of a living honorary citizen to responsibly point out grievances.

Furthermore, you seem to assume that Wilo owes gratitude to Dortmund’s local politics for the permits necessary to build the Wilopark. With the Health Cube – an innovative health centre that will benefit Wilo employees as well as people from the region – we will complete the final construction project on the Wilopark in 2026. This state-of-the-art work and production site is internationally renowned, award-winning, and provides exemplary employment for around 2,000 people, including many Dortmund residents.

The Wilo Group has invested a total of 400 million euros in Dortmund to establish its new corporate headquarters – despite the unmistakable disadvantages of Germany as a business and industrial location. These include especially high energy prices, excessive bureaucracy, poor infrastructure, and a growing shortage of skilled workers. Your response to this commitment to the location reads rather oddly: Investments? Yes, please. Critical engagement with the city's development? For you in the CDU, a scandal!

We do not expect thanks from the citizens of Dortmund for this decision; but we do expect recognition from local politics and the right to participate (critically) in public debate. That you apparently believe Wilo is indebted to you for the necessary construction permits is outrageous and unworthy of a party that claims economic competence.

Dear Dr. Suck,

Free, sometimes controversial opinions and political debate are part of a vibrant city, especially during an election campaign. To interpret this as disloyalty to the city is wrong and leads directly to division.

Respecting those who think differently and responding to disagreements objectively is part of a culture of debate that the CDU has helped build in this country. You would do well to remember these principles.

Sincerely,

Oliver Hermes

President & Global CEO of the Wilo Group
Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Wilo-Foundation & Shareholder