Amidst great interest, Freek van Genugten was inaugurated as the new Mayor of Municipality of Nuenen on Tuesday evening. The 43-year-old from Den Bosch is the successor to acting Mayor Madeleine van Toorenburg. “You are ready to create your own painting”.
According to deputy chair of the Municipal Council Monique Donkers, the new Mayor is “a strong personality, a stable factor, and a committed, accessible Mayor with the necessary knowledge of the Brainport Region”.
Ine Adema, King’s Commissioner in Noord (north) Brabant, was also present to officially swear in the new Mayor. According to her, everything will be fine with a resident from the city of artist Jeroen Bosch at the helm of a municipality that has painter Vincent van Gogh as its figurehead. “A combination of Bosch’s imagination and Van Gogh’s light and warmth”.
Mission
Van Genugten calls himself a bon vivant, according to Adema. “And indeed, your roots are in Brabant. But you are also a man with a mission. Thorough, committed, substantively strong, and always motivated to serve society. Your profile therefore fits seamlessly with that of Nuenen: a connector who is also open to what is happening outside the municipal boundaries..”
Adema also pointed out the former secretary of the diocese of ‘s-Hertogenbosch’s sense of humor. “An excellent quality for a Mayor, allowing you to put things into perspective and unwind”.
After Van Genugten took the oath, Suzanne Otters-Bruijnen, Mayor of Son en Breugel, delivered a beautiful speech on behalf of the mayors’ association of the 21 municipalities in Zuidoost (south east) Brabant. “Your canvas is still blank and your brushes are still clean, but you are now ready to paint your own picture”.
Assignments
The last word went to the newly appointed Mayor himself. In a passionate speech, Van Genugten indicated that he would pursue a ‘listening leadership’ style. He sees the mayoralty as a calling. “I have set myself three tasks: to connect and be visible, to be the guardian of public order, and to promote cooperation in the region”.
The Mayor must therefore be a jack of all trades, but according to Van Genugten, the most prominent administrator within the municipality is not the ‘jack of all trades’ for all local problems. “He is much more the promoter of a democratic culture, in which people take responsibility for themselves. Participating, feeling safe, and being heard. That is what I am committed to. After all, we do it together”.
Source: Studio040
Translated by: Bob
