“Mask fetishists”, “vaccination sheep” and “the Coronawahnreichs Propaganda Ministry SRF”: Peter B. * (44) hits out on Twitter for an all-round attack against the Corona measures, vaccinated people and journalists. And not just once: almost every hour he lets his anger run free on the short message service.
He is by no means alone with his attitude towards the coronavirus and the measures taken. What is explosive, however, is that he is employed by the federal government himself. Peter B. works at the Federal Roads Office (Astra) and is responsible for the construction of a safety tunnel on the motorway between Chur and San Bernardino, as “20 Minuten” reports.
Federal employee feels “excluded” as an unvaccinated person
He himself emphasizes to the medium that his tweets are merely private expressions of opinion. He was of the opinion that an “sometimes critical and satirically provocative” expression of opinion should be possible and accepted regardless of the business position in Switzerland.
In addition, as an unvaccinated person, he feels that he is “marginalized” from society and that he “feels it every day”. His Twitter comments are a protest against the allegations, which would rattle on him as an “avalanche of media articles”. However, he admits that in some moments he overreacted. “I wouldn’t make certain statements with a little distance.” However, he has always strictly separated his professional and private life, and his professional activities have never been affected.
Astra reprimands angry employees for tweets
Despite his regrets, the civil engineer is on thin ice with his comments, because: According to federal regulations, his digital outbursts of anger violate the guidelines on “dealing with social media”, which federal employees must adhere to. Among other things, it says: “Do not publish any statements, comments or documents that could harm the federal administration.”
Astra communications manager Benno Schmid confirmed at the newspaper’s request that Peter B.’s tweets violated these guidelines. “We have made the employee aware that his statements are bringing his employer Bund and the Astra into disrepute and that this could possibly have consequences for him,” said Schmid.
Although Peter B. moves on Twitter as a private person, he should be aware, according to Schmid, that his remarks “stand in the field of tension between freedom of expression and duty of loyalty to the employer”. (chs)
* Name known to the editor