Farewell to Member of Parliament Ockje Tellegen
On November 15, 2022, the Sejm said goodbye to VVD MP Ockje Tellegen. On her retirement she was appointed Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau.
Ockje Tellegen has been a Member of Parliament for the VVD for over ten years. On October 14, she announced that she would not be returning after burnout in February. In a farewell letter read by Chamber President Vera Bergkamp, Tellegen wrote that she has received many “warm” reactions since her statement, but that the decision remains difficult. “Membership has never felt like a normal one day job. It always felt an honor to be one of those 150. It also filled me with a great sense of responsibility.”
Round table discussion
VVD MP was Chairman of the Standing Committee on Education, Culture and Science. Bergkamp noted that in this situation she advocated the introduction of a so-called round-table discussion, in which two groups of guests with different points of view would argue with each other under the watchful eyes of the deputies. At the beginning of 2020, I organized for the first time the activity of this committee on educational curricula.
Knight of the Order of Orange of Nassau
Tellegen was also the first vice president of the House of Representatives. Bergkamp described her as “a showman, proud, hard worker”. After her farewell words, she pinned the ribbon that belonged to her appointment as a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau.
“Travel enthusiast. Alcohol lover. Friendly entrepreneur. Coffeeaholic. Award-winning writer.”