L’latest investigation by the Reggio Calabria Prosecutor’s Office into relations between the mafia and political parties premises deserves entirely political reflections. With one exception, that of pointing out that the judiciary did well to move with the polls closed for the European elections without influencing the electoral campaign. Only common sense political reflections, leaving aside the questions, albeit important, of whether it is right or wrong to investigate, to ask for arrests and leaving aside the disputes between investigating magistrates and prosecutors. Let’s try to stay with objective facts.
Someone asked, very rhetorically, in the most positive sense of the term, whether the mayor of Reggio Calabria, Giuseppe Falcomatàknew that Daniel Barillàson-in-law of Domenico Araniti, known as “The Duke” and I don’t think due to similarities with David Bowie, he was a pushover between Palazzo politics and the electorate of Sambatello and Catona where at least 1,000 votes can be allocated to this or that candidate.
In In a medium-sized city like Reggio Calabria, everything is known, especially certain heraldry. Araniti’s surname was Pietro Carmelo, twice regional councilor of the PRI in the 1980s, five times councillor, left-wing independent then, for convenience, unelected candidate of Paolo Romeo’s PSDI, then moved to Forza Italia and sent away by Scajola for the his gruff politics. Pietro Araniti was killed at the age of 59 on Aspromonte near a village he had built with his company which was in the cement and urban planning cycle which he had also managed. He was Pietro, Santo’s first cousin, sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Vico Ligato, an illustrious Christian Democrat killed at home in Bocale once he returned to the city to make papers on the contracts of the Reggio Decree in the 1980s, and was soon forgotten by his left as an excellent corpse.
He plays a significant role in this story Daniel Barillà, called Danielino by the mayor of Reggio Calabria. Seeker of votes for the latest municipal elections and also active in the regional elections apparently in favor of Giuseppe Neri, group leader of Fdi all’Astronave, and of Francesco Sera, exponent of the Reggio PD and also known for having been a valid scout leader who in Reggio Calabria it is an activity of meritorious tradition.
Outside of judicial prose, who is Daniel Barillà? Someone who led Sambatello’s section of the Democratic Party stumbling into a story of inflated memberships equal to those of the First Republic DC. And here the first trivial question arises. But was it appropriate for Duke Araniti’s son-in-law to hold such a delicate party role? The answer to those who were distracted.
But Danielino has also had public roles. He had to be rewarded for the support requested by Mayor Falcomatà at the last minute as confirmed by an interception now known to all. Councilor Sera would have gone to the Araniti house on 6 September 2020 and the promise would have been to appoint Danielino as liquidator of Leonia spa, a company dissolved, ironically, by the mafia. The appointment would not have taken place, due to incompatibility with Barillà’s role in the municipal evaluation body of the Municipality, one of the first actions decided by the mayor at his second election. Was this type of appointment linked to waste appropriate for the son-in-law of the boss Araniti? We await answers, even though we are not the competent place of investigation.
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In the political story we cannot fail to write about Giuseppe Neri, the Melonian regional group leader who boasts a past of positions and roles on the left of no small importance. Facts to be classified under modern transformationism and which lead many to regret the buried First Republic where it was almost impossible for a Social Democrat to get elected among the MSI members. For Francesco Sera surname omen upon learning that once he has acquired his vote he goes to Don Domenico’s house to say “it was my duty to come and say hello”.
For all these episodes and contexts we have not heard any comments from Meloni, from the legalistic Ferro, from Schlein, or from the badass Ruotolo and so on. The debate, very lacking as it should be in this era, records pale interested gasps and a noisy silence from the two main Italian parties who have the advantage of not discussing the issue. I know the reason for having ascertained it. Since the Second Republic, the national secretariats (with exceptions such as the one found in Reggio in these hours for the 5 Star Movement) have reasoned with the dogma: “The Calabrian leaders take care of Calabria, they do it”. It doesn’t matter who or how, the important thing is that there are votes, especially in this difficult era of participation. The other objective truth was explained by Nicola Gratteri. Once upon a time, mafia leaders offered their consent to politics. Now the candidates go to the mafia boss or some relative.
Reggio Calabria remained a painful city as Aldo Varano defined it in a book from the 1990s. The city where you meet at the Bar Mida to transform consensus into gold, a place where the politician for votes talks with a certain Gino La beast, and where the galloper and the politician curse and insult the journalists who do their duty to remind us that that old film with Humprey Bogart called “The Last Menace” is still, fortunately, relevant. In Reggio Calabria the mayors under investigation are a ritual like the Feast of the Madonna in September. Since the time of Agatino Licandro, they called him Titti of the Rolling Stones, everyone has had investigations and trials, even that secular saint Italo Falcomatà. Justice does not have parallel times to politics. Issue removed from the reform projects. Snail Justice seems to want to keep everything still. Reggio is still waiting to know the judicial truths of the Miramare bis and whether councilor Castorina altered the outcome of the votes. In October 2025 we will vote for the mayor and the city council. Consensus must be sought and candidates chosen according to opportunity, so as to avoid yet another judicial investigation.
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Sunday evening on Rai 5 airs at 10.10pm a program dedicated to Cosenza from the valuable series “Across the river and among the trees”. I confess a particular involvement of the work due to the fact that the whole thing was titled “Cosenza, Cosangeles” as the author Alessandro Nucci took inspiration from the title of one of my books to tell the genius loci of a city with a very strong identity. In the documentary, in addition to me, Sergio Crocco from Terra di Piero, Francesca Caruso who illustrates Onco Med volunteering, the Welsh professor John Trumper who explains the non-existence of a single Calabrian dialect, Gianluigi Greco grappling with Artificial Intelligence, the actor Ernesto Orrico who pays homage to the genius of Marcello Walter Bruno and many stories of common people. The documentary will be immediately available on RaiPlay and later also broadcast on Rai 3.
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The famous family of Calabrian liqueurs adds a new prestigious example. From Altomonte, the historic brand Jacobins launched in 1879, it launches its red Vermouth with a very elegant packaging that recalls the classic label of 1904 in a contemporary key. The organic and artisanal content is even better. Inspired by the ancient recipe, it mixes Ceraudo wine and grape sugar, herbal extracts and infusions, spices and citrus peels from the Mediterranean scrub. In my layman’s opinion it is also good in cocktails. High cost (between 32 and 36 euros) but the experience after the coffee or to make a good impression on the guests is worth it.
Prosit. ([email protected])
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