Speech by Arno Schepers installation council 11 July 2024

Since I received a phone call on May 23 at a quarter past seven in the evening from Bert van Ravenhorst, the chairman of the confidential committee and clerk Arlette Goslings, I have had the feeling that I am floating a bit. Because not only is it a huge honor to be allowed to fulfill the office of mayor, it becomes even more special when you are allowed to do so in a wonderful municipality like Voorne aan Zee . 

Since it became known on the 23rd that I will become mayor of Voorne aan Zee , I have met a lot of people with roots in Voorne aan Zee . They told me that they were born and raised in Hellevoeter, have family in Rockanje or were born in Brielle. Last Thursday, when I said goodbye to Hilversum, one of the employees of the Music Centre for Broadcasting enthusiastically told me that her parents live in Rockanje and that she herself was born in Oostvoorne. And then I haven't even mentioned everyone who told me about their memories of holidays on Voorne: on the beach of Rockanje, walking in the Voornse dunes or learning to sail on the Brielse lake. All those stories had a very clear common thread: everyone, without exception, talks with warmth, pride and enormous love about Voorne aan Zee ! How nice is it when you, as the youngest municipality in the Netherlands, have so many proud ambassadors? But in the many times that I have been here in recent weeks, with and without my family, I have also experienced the warmth of the residents of Voorne aan Zee I myself have already experienced. The highlight was the moment I bought a bottle of wine at a delicatessen in Oostvoorne. When I answered the question whether I was on holiday here that I would be the new mayor, I was immediately asked: oh how nice, do you want to be in our points system? And of course I wanted that.

I already mentioned it: Voorne aan Zee is the youngest municipality in the Netherlands. With all the energy and dynamism that goes with it. But at the same time, there is a beautiful paradox in it: because which very young municipality can simultaneously boast such an enormously important role in the history of the Netherlands? Hellevoetsluis was given the role of the most important naval port of the young republic of the Seven United Netherlands from the beginning of the 17th century. In Oostvoorne, the remains of the castle that was used as a country house by Jacoba van Beieren, Countess of Holland, Zeeland and Hainaut, can still be seen. And yes, April 1, 1572. The water beggars who captured the city of Den Briel. The Duke of Alva initially underestimated this event, but the capture of Den Briel turned out to be the first successful start of the resistance against the Spanish rulers and a source of inspiration for rebels in various cities in the Netherlands. Libertatis Primitiae, it is even written on this beautiful chain. In Brielle were the Firstlings of Freedom.

And now, more than 450 years later, freedom is still not a given. Less than three days' drive away, on the border of Europe, a fierce war is raging. But democracy is under pressure almost everywhere. The Democracy Index, an index published annually by the British magazine The Economist, a kind of gauge of the state of democracy in the world, made it clear this year that democracy has deteriorated worldwide again in 2024. Fortunately, the Netherlands still ranks high in this index, but here too, confidence in the government and politics is under pressure. In the redistricting election in 2022, only 38% of voters in Voorne aan Zee cast a vote.

And yes, democracy is sometimes very difficult. The majority has to take the minority into account. Make compromises. Sometimes make decisions that no one is really happy with. “Democracy is the worst kind of government. Except for all the others that have been tried.”, Churchill once said. In short: there is work to be done.

But fortunately there is one place where we can breathe new life into our trust in democracy. And that is the place where politics and government are still really close to the residents. Here in the municipality. In many places, people often talk mainly about freedom. But here we are more of no words but actions. So let us here in Voorne aan Zee , inspired by those Firstlings of Freedom, see how it can be done. Let us be that municipality that stands by its residents and entrepreneurs. A municipality that is available, accessible and approachable. A municipality that thinks along. And a municipality that listens. I am sure that this, together with our council members and aldermen, perhaps the beggars of local democracy, will succeed.

And of course I realize that this will not happen automatically. After all, we are a merged municipality and therefore not everything can be done at once. And besides, freedom only works with the right preconditions. Preconditions such as tolerance. We live in Voorne aan Zee with many different people and all those people all have their own life story and background. In other words, let's give everyone the space to be themselves. And of course safety. Because to feel freedom, you have to be safe. Whether you live in Nieuw-Helvoet, Vierpolders or Oostvoorne.

Here, in the hall of the town hall of Hellevoetsluis, a short poem by Herman Gorter can be read:

The sea, one water of freedom,
Dancing infinite light,
The sky, one space of freedom
Without weight
They play one with the other,
Freedoms' meeting each other.

This beautiful poem is for me a very fitting bridge between all that history and the roots of freedom, and at the same time everything that the young Voorne aan Zee has to offer in the present. And that is an awful lot!

The many associations. The cultural and sports offerings. The entrepreneurs. The sea. The dunes. The beaches. The dikes. The beautiful polders. The fortresses. The unique cores, all with their own charm and character, whether you are in Tinte or Zwartewaal. It was already very nice to see in the film. Ten minutes after I received the phone call about my presentation, I got in the car and went to Voorne aan Zee to raise a glass with my council and college. I drove past Rotterdam, through the Botlek, a huge urban and industrial area, and took the Hellevoetsluis exit. I crossed the Brielse Meer, drove through the polder and before I knew it I was driving past the waving oaks along the N57. It's beautiful here, is the slogan of Voorne aan zee . I agree with that, but I think it shows some modesty. It's insanely beautiful here! 

Looking at the number of inhabitants, Voorne aan Zee the 55th municipality of the Netherlands. But if you look at how beautiful it is here, it is simply top 10! The profile contained a nice quote from one of the residents of Voorne: we are looking for a mayor who is proud of Voorne aan Zee . Well, I am! And of course I hope that the residents are proud of their mayor. But I think it is even more important that all residents are proud of their beautiful municipality, because there is so much to be proud of here!

But to explore all those possibilities of Voorne aan Zee To cash in, it is important that we, with almost 75,000 inhabitants and an area of 175 square kilometers, all realize that we are a large, serious municipality. Because Voorne aan Zee is not a sum of three municipalities, it is much more than the sum of its parts and a proud, self-confident attitude is appropriate for that. And of course that also applies to the administrative culture. Let us especially seek out the sharpness in the political debate, but let us, the municipal council and the board together, always feel the awareness that together we Voorne aan Zee govern and be responsible for the bright future of our municipality.
If we do that, together with the organization, we will create enormous impact and we will build a great future on all that rich history here!

I already said it: In South Holland we are more of words than of actions. And that is why I am slowly going to conclude. But I will not do so before I want to thank the confidential committee for the wonderful conversations we have had. And of course I want to thank the municipal council very much for their trust. I feel very honoured by this, as I have already said. And last but certainly not least, I would of course like to thank Peter Rehwinkel, my predecessor. Peter, thank you very much for what you have done for Voorne aan Zee have meant the past year and a half!