Ramona Pop has been a member of the Berlin House of Representatives since 2001 and was the leader of the Greens parliamentary group from 2009 to 2016.
(Photo: dpa)
Berlin Ramona Pop becomes Germany’s top consumer advocate. The former Berlin Senator for Economics will take over as head of the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations (VZBV) on July 1st. “Especially in times of crisis, strong consumer protection is of great importance and gives people security,” said Pop on Monday in Berlin.
The VZBV is the umbrella organization for consumer centers in the 16 federal states and other consumer associations. “As an experienced politician and manager, she will give consumer protection in Germany a strong voice,” said the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the VZBV, Wolfgang Schuldzinski.
The 44-year-old takes over the function as board member from Jutta Gurkmann, who temporarily managed the association after the departure of long-standing board member Klaus Müller. Müller has been President of the Federal Network Agency since March. Both Müller and Pop are members of the Greens.
The Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture, Cem Özdemir (Greens), praises Pop as a “strong advocate” for consumers. This is not only important in times of crisis. Özdemir wrote on Twitter that her great experience, her knowledge of the economy and her networking are an asset for the VZBV.
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The leader of the Bundestag faction of the Greens, Britta Haßelmann, also explained in view of the upcoming challenges: “Especially in times of crisis, strong consumer protection is needed.”
Pop had announced her withdrawal from Berlin state politics in December. The Greens politician explained at the time that she had informed her party that she would not be available again for a Senate post.
Pop has been a member of the Berlin House of Representatives since 2001 and was the leader of the Greens parliamentary group from 2009 to 2016. For five years she was in the red-red-green state government of the then governing mayor, Michael Müller, Senator for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises.
For her, “the right time has come to start a new chapter in my life,” Pop explained at the end of 2021. When asked whether she would withdraw completely from politics or take on new tasks in federal politics, she reacted evasively at the time: ” We’ll see.”
“I’m proud of how Berlin has developed”
Pop’s vita is unusual for a German politician. She was born in Timisoara in Romania in 1977 and came to Germany eleven years later with parts of her family. After graduating from high school in Münster, she studied political science at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität there and at the Freie Universität Berlin. She has been a member of the Greens since 1997.
When she announced her withdrawal from state politics, Pop reviewed the formative moments of her political career and recalled her time as leader of the Greens parliamentary group: After the failed government formation with the SPD in 2011, she had to work hard with others to fill cracks in the to patch up your own ranks and make the faction successful again. Proof that this has been achieved is the participation of the Greens in the government since 2016.
“I’m proud of how Berlin has developed in recent years,” Pop summed up her time in office. This included 170,000 new jobs, Berlin as the frontrunner in terms of economic growth with simultaneously falling CO2 emissions, and the expansion of local public transport. In addition, Berlin is an open and helpful city for people from all over the world. “It was really worth it to give everything.”
Now, Pop is looking forward to, as she put it, “being able to represent the interests and rights of consumers”.
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