«Hàmme rùtte u prìse», «acquann’ abbòtte, abbòtte a ttùtte». And again, «below or uàste vène uaggiùste». Are the election posters in dialect created by the communications company Ars Media in view of the vote scheduled for June 8th and 9th. The political campaign of the center-right of Bari and its candidate started from here Fabio Romito, who through the vernacular wanted to highlight the failures of the center-left in Bari from his point of view.
«The ironic essence of the Bari dialect»
The regional councilor announced his entry into the field by riding the territorial identity, bringing concepts expressed in dialect to the streets. On one side the writing «We have hit rock bottom», next to it the other reads «Every limit has been exceeded». While on the third example we read: «After the storm comes the calm». The date of the vote is always indicated on each small poster positioned at the top left. Claim, those chosen by Romito, which appear to be decidedly more citizen and relaxing, compared to the very harsh messages that have been present in the Forza Italia posters since the end of 2023 («Enough mafia, bribes and malfeasance in the city»), in which the presence of the mafia in Bari. A topic on which Romito has already clarified on several occasions not wanting to build his electoral campaign. From the centre-right they explained that «The colored posters are liberating the authentic essence of the Bari dialect, which with sarcasm and irony photographs the emotional state of citizens, involved in spite of themselves by the ongoing political earthquake. Lively and vibrant graphics, sharp phrases that capture the attention of passers-by, inviting them to reflect on the challenges and hopes of the city. Is a “new season” on the horizon?”
The clarification: «The dialect is written differently»
Yet, there has also been a wide debate on this topic. For Happy Young Manin fact, a linguist and expert of the Bari dialect, it would be written «U aggiùste, acquànne e àmme». Detecting a grammatical error, even though it is dialect. While the president of Aeroporti di Puglia and former centre-left municipal councillor, Antonio Vasile, is not convinced of the stylistic choice. And under a Facebook post he comments: “But didn’t we want to be European?”. Implicitly referring to one of the most long-standing criticisms that have been leveled at the Barse administration in recent years, he is guilty of having built his media success on tradition without opening his doors to the development of the territory.
