Flemish education minister Ben Weyts has sent out an unusual New Year’s message to the world: in the form of a comic video posted on YouTube.
In the video, in a setting familiar to any fan of sketch comedy, Ben Weyts is in his office in January 2020 when a masked visitor bursts in. The man announces himself as Ben Weyts from December 2020.
January Weyts has no trouble taking this in, and asks December Weyts about the success of Flemish athletes at the Tokyo Olympics (Weyts is also minister of sport).
“Let me put it this way,” says December Weyts. “Our athletes didn’t lose a single competition.”
January Weyts then explains how he wants to be an education minister close to the schools, close to the staff and close to the students. December Weyts informs him he will go down in history as the minister who was most distant from his sector – 1.5m distant, to be precise.
And so on. You get the idea.
January Weyts is advised to stock up on toilet paper, to make sure he has Marc Van Ranst on speed dial (“The guy from Twitter?” asks January Weyts) and to prepare for N-VA to be left out of the federal government.
The video ends with December Weyts paying tribute to all those – teachers, students, school administrators, animal shelters, sports federations, coaches – who soldiered through 2020 against the toughest of conditions to give the best of themselves.
Alan Hope
The Brussels Times
