The Danish Ministry of Digitalization has upheld Copenhagen’s decision that Frie Grønne leader Sikandar Siddique was not eligible for election to the city council, pointing to unusually low electricity use and his bank statements.
DR obtained the decision through a freedom of information request. The ministry, which acts as the appeals body, rejected Siddique’s complaint. Copenhagen Municipality had concluded in February that he did not live at the address he registered before the election.
Municipal politicians must live in the municipality where they run for office. The decision therefore means Siddique was not eligible at the November election and can no longer sit on Borgerrepræsentationen. He has maintained throughout that he left his family and a house in Herlev for an apartment in Copenhagen.
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Siddique officially moved from Herlev to Copenhagen on September 9 last year, about two months before the vote. According to the decision, the apartment used 61 kilowatt-hours in September, 98 in October, 40 in November and 37 in December.
The ministry compared those figures with average consumption in similar homes. A typical 80 square meter apartment with two residents is put at 173.3 kilowatt-hours per month. The ministry rejected the argument that campaigning explained the low use, writing that consumption never matched even low use for two people in a three-room apartment.
Bank statements weighed heavily
The ministry also reviewed the bank statements Siddique handed to Copenhagen Municipality. Several entries were redacted. Even so, the ministry found the records indicated he had not lived at the registered address.
Purchases in the local area were described as so sporadic and financially insignificant that they could not reflect real daily housekeeping, even during a campaign. The ministry called the electricity and account data information of a more objective character, which under its practice carries relatively high evidential weight. The decision was addressed to Siddique’s lawyer, Erbil Kaya.
Siddique has one remaining option, the courts, but wrote on Facebook that he will not pursue it. He said such a case would stretch into the next election period and would involve his family as witnesses. He repeated his argument that the case is politically motivated. DR reported that it tried without success to obtain an interview with him.
The Ministry of the Interior told DR that it is now up to Borgerrepræsentationen to decide whether Siddique loses his seat. The ministry also stated that he will not have to repay remuneration already received.
Copenhagen Municipality said the case will be handled at a meeting on September 17. The seat would then pass to Siddique’s substitute. Frie Grønne secured its place on the council at last year’s election.
Lord Mayor Sisse Marie Welling commented in writing that Siddique’s statements speak for themselves and that she regrets the case. She said the matter has been investigated thoroughly and that she is glad the ministry upheld the municipality’s decision.
