State Police, closes the Eastern Sicily Crime Prevention Department

CATANIA – The Italian Unitary Police Workers Union, Majority union of the Security Sectordenounces the closure of Eastern Sicily Crime Prevention Department based in Catania.

Crime prevention department

Last April 4th, during the meeting at Department of Public Safetythe desire to keep only one in operation was clearly expressed Crime Prevention Department by region with the suppression of the Eastern Sicily Department stationed in the metropolitan city of Catania, which, at present, has approximately 40 employed units purely in a territorial control service to support the provinces of Catania, Messina, Syracuse, Ragusa and Ennawith occasional use also in other parts of the island and the country.

Organized crime in Sicily

We must not forget that in Sicilyboth for issues of geographical extension and for those relating to organized crime, there are multiple offices that have the same competences divided into the sector Western and Orientalamong these just think of the Traffic Police Department, the Mobile Department, the Telecommunications Area and various other offices with investigative skills.

It is unthinkable that the largest region in Italy and with more than 5 million inhabitantswhich places it fifth in the country, can remain with just one Crime Prevention Department for the whole island, inevitably neglecting more than 2 and a half million inhabitants divided into the provinces of the Eastern part. Catania, in addition to being the first city in Italy, not the regional capital, in terms of number of residents, which places it in 10th place on a national scale, represents the eighth metropolitan city with the most inhabitants.

These data cannot be underestimated and placed in second place compared to choices that affect the security of an area that has always been troubled by the vicissitudes that have seen it and see it as a negative protagonist for criminal phenomena despite the immense effort made by women and by the men of the State Police, currently understaffed in the Province.

Scaccianoce’s statements

Giuseppe Scaccianoce, Provincial General Secretary of SIULPdeclares: “Lthe closure of the Catania Crime Prevention Department cannot be shared in any way by the SIULP, both because it removes women and men from the territory State Police intended for roadside checks, and because the maintenance of this Office has no impact on the management and rental costs of the host structure, as it hosts other Police Headquarters offices within it which would remain in any case”.

“The Office in question represents an essential resource available to the Catania Police Commissioner General Director of Public Security, Dr. Giuseppe Bellassaiand all the other Quaestors of the interested provinces, who, thanks to the contribution of this Department, can plan on a weekly basis a control of the territory of the capitals and cities of the province aimed at the CIT services (Integrated Territorial Controls), the so-called ‘Movida’ services and the services called ‘Alto An impact that involves dozens and dozens of law enforcement units“.

“We could discuss a different use with regards to sending support to the other provinces, in particular it would be appropriate and desirable for the operators to come weekly, according to a rotation criterion by province which is not up to the Union to establish, assigned, without that these are used daily departing from Catania, which, effectively, significantly reduces their impact on control of the territory. Therefore, from the objective data that emerged, in light of the decisions taken centrally by the Department of Public Security, it would be appropriate for the issue, free from considerations ‘with the colors of the parties’, to be addressed in a decisive and decisive manner by the local, provincial, inter-provincial and regional, to be subsequently placed in the appropriate national offices. Freedom, property, security, resistance to oppression, no one has the power to choose which fundamental rights can be given up, even more so in a democratic order. Today the people of Catania must not choose or be forced to suffer the choices of others”concludes Scaccianoce.