The Campania Region does not make any request for autonomy as it does not agree with the law approved by Parliament on differentiated autonomy. This was learned in circles in the Region, where it is recalled that Campania had already put forward a proposal to reform regional autonomy, but very different from the one launched yesterday. The Campania governor Vincenzo De Luca, in fact, at the end of 2022 had put forward a reform proposal which was based on the “Simplification and decentralization of competences, with the Constitution unchanged”. The proposal suggested that “the current rules be reformed – we read in the text prepared at the end of 2022 by Campania – which provide for dozens of opinions from state administration offices which extend the deadlines for completing proceedings, seriously damaging citizens and businesses interested in initiatives of development. These opinions can and must be abolished, concentrating the competence of the Regions in seven subjects”. The matters in question were: environmental opinions, energy systems, landscape plans, urban and building transformation, ports, production settlements and SEZs, silent consent and devolutional silence on assets subject to landscape protection. The League, however, doesn’t agree and shoots De Luca to zero. “The Campania Region continues to spread lies regarding Autonomy. In this regard, it is not necessary to argue, as a response it is sufficient to attach the 2019 text. 5 years ago, Vincenzo De Luca had delivered a letter of formal request to join the Differentiated Autonomy to a government of a different political colour. As will clearly emerge from a quick reading of the document, the request of the president of Campania – alone among the regional presidents in the South – was so convinced that it was not even conditioned on the prior implementation of the Essential Performance Levels. Just to reiterate a concept, dear De Luca… if the Latins said ‘scripta manent’, here in Naples we say ‘e cchiacchiere s’ ‘e pporta ‘o viento”. Thus Severino Nappi, leader of the League in the Regional Council of Campania, in a note to which he attaches the text of the proposal put forward by Palazzo Santa Lucia in 2019.
Mayor Manfredi. The mayor of Naples Gaetano Manfredi agrees with the idea of the repeal referendum to cancel the law on differentiated autonomy, which has just been approved. “I agree that the word goes to the citizens, because the citizens must decide which country they want. We talk more and more about the need to involve citizens and therefore it is more than right that citizens express themselves”, said Manfredi
The socialists. “The Campania parliamentarians who voted for autonomy betrayed the South. They did not have the courage to do as their Calabrian colleagues did”. The national secretary of the PSI, Enzo Maraio, said this in a note. “Now, and this is the most singular thing, they are outraged by the names published in the newspapers. If they were aware of having done something historic and useful to the South they should proudly thank. If they feel ashamed for having supported something against the south, they are right to complain and ask to be forgotten”, concludes the secretary.
The Social Democrats. The PSDI expresses “deep concern for the approval of the Law on differentiated autonomy and for the recent declarations of the Governor of the Campania Region, in total agreement with what was declared by councilor Simeone in the municipal assembly. In reiterating the absolute necessity of the development and completion and the centrality of the public transport system in the City of Naples, the Party sees in the “disengagement” of the Government and the Region a dangerous dynamic which could lead, in short order, not only to paralysis of the transport system, but also to the consequent collapse of the healthcare system, already in a clear state of agony. The inability of a Government and a Region to guarantee the support, planning and future development of essential welfare services reveals their political failure”.
Southern jurists. “Far from wanting to descend into sterile and useless controversies, we invite the Government and the Campania Region to honor the commitments signed, to allow the citizens of Naples and Campania to be able to make use of the services worthy of the third largest city in the country. We believe that, otherwise, the political will is manifested to want to definitively sink our Metropolitan City, something for which we believe everyone must assume their own responsibilities. We are certain that there is still room for discussion and we hope for a correct discussion that will allow us to avoid such a disaster.” The Coordination for constituent democracy, the association of jurists who promoted the Committee of no to the 2016 referendum, will launch the collection of signatures for the referendum to repeal differentiated autonomy, together with the associations that are part of the cartel of associations, promoted by CGIL with ‘The main road’. Alfonso Gianni, member of the Cdc board of directors, the association led by Professor Massimo Villone, says this. “The CDC – recalls Gianni – is part of the many organizations that together with the CGIL created ‘La Via Maestra’, giving rise to the demonstrations last October and in March in Naples. There we decided to arrive at a plurality of initiatives.” “As soon as the law is published in the Official Journal – he explains – it will be possible, based on article 127 of the Constitution, for one or more Regions to appeal directly to the Constitutional Court on the illegitimacy of this law. This is why our local committees are pressing more like-minded Regional Councils and Presidents.” “Secondly, we are preparing referendums, which can be requested in two ways: either by five Regional Councils, or at the same time, by 500 thousand citizens, preferably 550 thousand to have a margin, by 30 September, if we want the referendum will be celebrated in 2025. The problem is to pass the admissibility screening of the Constitutional Court. There are those who say that the bill, being technically linked to the budget law, cannot be subjected to a referendum; but it is a weak argument, because the bill itself says that it does not involve expenditure, and is therefore a fraudulent connection. In the meantime, we will collect the signatures.” Gianni underlines that there are numerous associations that will engage in this battle: “The range of forces is wide, which can be recognized in the ‘Via Maestra’ promoted by the CGIL”. Alfonso Gianni adds a superstitious element: “The CDC defeated Renzi in the 2014 referendum – and that’s what I remembered at the demonstration in Piazza Santi Apostoli the day before yesterday. Then the attitude of the Democratic Party was one type, today it is another and it is the sign of the times”.
