Rob Oudkerk wants to be new Amsterdam mayor

Rob Oudkerk published his application letter for the post of mayor of Amsterdam. "Amsterdammers have the right to know who wants to hold this office and why", the former Amsterdam alderman, who was forced to resign in 2004 because of prostitution visits, said in the letter published in Het Parool on Wednesday.

According to Oudkerk (PvdA), he is openly applying for the mayoral post because going through this procedure in total confidentiality is no longer of this time. "I respect everyone's choice in this, but hope that more people would want to step into the open", he said, according to the newspaper. Transparency is a characteristic that is explicitly requested in the profile, and candidates can not be selective about this, he believes. "Partly by publishing my letter, I want to show how important I think this value is."

Earlier this week Commissioner of the King Johan Remkes announced that 85 people applied for the post of mayor after the vacancy was opened for the second time. In the first round there were 29 applicants. In total 18 of these applicants have experience in public administration, a requirement for the post. Oudkerk is one of those 18.

In his letter, Oudkerk writes that he is still ashamed that he had to resign as alderman of Amsterdam. "But despite the fear and despite the shame, there is an inner voice that has never been silenced. Call it a calling to serve my home city." He refers to his work experience as a general practitioner in Amsterdam, chairman of the association for Amsterdam secondary schools, and as parliamentarian.

Oudkerk also applied to be mayor in 2010, but then the job went to Eberhard van der Laan.

According to Het Parool, Femke Halsema (GroenLinks), Carolien Gehrels (PvdA) and Onno Hoes (VVD) also applied for the job.