bild

A picture dated May 6, 1998 of the then German interior minister Manfred Kanther of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) during a press conference in Bonn. Kanther announced on Monday 17 January 2000 to resign as member of the German Bundestag, or lower house of parliament. German prosecution spokesman Dieter Alert said 17 January prosecution opened a formal inquiry after Hesse CDU chief Roland Koch and his predecessor Kanther made revelations concerning secret party accounts held abroad. (KEYSTONE/EPA PHOTO/DPA/MARTIN ATHENSTAEDT)