ROVIGO – “In recent days, several thorny events have returned to the forefront of the news which have affected the Municipality of Rovigo and the management of various local services (READ ARTICLE). The debate that has been triggered is certainly worthy of attention, due to the complexity of the topics and the disruptive ways in which the various sides, more or less instrumentally, are conducting it (READ ARTICLE).
Among all the issues on which everyone has expressed their opinion up to now, one story is missing, which saw the light in November 2017, after a long journey and with which the next Municipal Administration will most likely already have to clash: project financing relating to the expansion of the Viale Oroboni Cemetery” denounced by the 5 Star Movement of Rovigo.
“This financial project is yet another demonstration of wrong bets with citizens’ money, and our children will pay the bill, due to excessively “diligent” choices. It all dates back to 2003, during the Avezzù council, the Project included around 3000 niches, 1000 ossuaries and around 80 parking spaces. The works were divided into 3 parts, the first was completed in the two-year period 2004-2006, with the sale, however, of the niches only around 2012.
The end (or beginning) of the story, however, took place in 2017, when the contract with a negative technical opinion was taken up again and approved in the City Council by the majority of the former mayor Bergamin (Lega), for the resumption of the works , which provided for a 74% increase in costs for thirty-year burial niches, the obligation to choose new burial niches while leaving aside the old ones, putting a stop to the expansion of the cemeteries in the hamlets and having the commission for the Municipality remitted from the sale of the burial niches (from 35% to 10%).
Last but not least: the clause which provided for the Municipality to purchase the unsold niches. Singular in a historical moment in which more and more people are choosing cremation also for economic savings. Revenues would have been around 15 million euros until 2038, and with gross profits of around 3 and a half million euros.
However, these results will be achieved by a company that was 90% municipal (purchased through Asm SpA for 200 thousand euros), and resold for just 40 thousand euros when it would have been in a position to make profits. The justification for this operation was that the company (90% municipal) had threatened a 2.3 million lawsuit against the municipality itself.
Another beautiful sword of Damocles, placed on the heads of the citizens of Rovigo, and which will be the next misadventure that any administration will have to deal with.
But now the main actors of these operations are still candidates, someone with the center right, while someone else has given himself to “civism” well placed on the right.
We need a serious transparency operation, especially when we are called upon to make choices with the community’s money, and the objective of the 5 Star Movement will be to ensure that wicked choices like these no longer occur, for efficient management of public resources” conclude from the 5 Star Movement of Rovigo
