The court cases and the whistleblower case include email correspondence and alleged statements made by the TU/e ombudsperson for staff. The University Council believes that this is harmful to the community because it can create a feeling of insecurity and discourage people in that community from reaching out to the ombudsperson.

The council is also concerned about the position of the ombudsperson herself, because – as the council stated on previous occasions – this kind of thing makes it increasingly difficult for her to do her job properly and unrestrictedly. During Monday’s University Council meeting, council member Remco Tuinier repeatedly asked whether the Executive Board had shared the ombudsperson’s communication in the whistleblower report and how it will prevent this from happening again in other cases in the future. Vice President Patrick Groothuis didn’t provide any direct answers and stated that he hadn’t been present at the committee hearing on the whistleblower case.

Groothuis said he would prefer to wait for the results of the independent investigation into the three cases. Chair Koen Jansen agreed, stating that “we want to know whether all parties acted correctly.”

Investigation agency

For the moment, it’s being kept a secret which agency will take charge of the investigation, according to spokesperson Ivo Jongsma. “We’re in the process of concluding the contract with the investigation agency, but we can’t reveal its name yet.”

The investigation isn’t only meant to clarify who shared the ombuds communication in the cases concerned, but also to shed light on the extent to which the confidentiality of communication with the ombudsperson can be upheld in legal terms and whether the internal ombuds regulations are at odds with this.