When the Federal Court of Auditors wanted to know what was happening in the offices of the former Chancellors Helmut Schmidt, Helmut Kohl and Gerhard Schröder, some of the employees there were very unwilling.

You said the documents were "private" and that's why the Federal Court of Auditors has nothing to do with them.

That was a very clumsy answer.

If anything concerns the Federal Audit Office at all, then it is the use of federal funds for "private" interests.

The state does not finance anything private.

Justus Bender

Editor in the politics of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sunday newspaper.

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So the investigation took place and it turned out that a former Chancellor had commissioned his office to coordinate construction work on a private house.

The employees seconded by the state negotiated with construction companies and took care of craftsmen's bills.

In one case, office staff supported “the wife of a former Chancellor.

D. in her writing activities”, as stated in the report of the Federal Court of Auditors.