BERLIN, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- Germany's main conservative opposition party has been rattled by the resignation of a senior member who admitted taking corporate kickbacks.
Laurenz Meyer, general secretary of the conservative Christian Democratic Union, made the admission Wednesday, saying, "I have to acknowledge that my work hurts the party more than its helps it," the International Herald Tribune reported.
The allegations began last week, and as late as Monday, Meyer denied them. He was backed by party leader Angela Merkel.
But Wednesday, Meyer admitted having received previously undisclosed payments and perks from the energy group, RWE, when he held office on the state and, later, on the federal level.
Merkel said she would appoint Volker Kauder as general secretary in a bid to restore morale inside the party and create some unity so the Christian Democrats can start challenging Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's Social Democrats in time for the 2006 federal elections.
