With the waters of the port of Genoa once again agitated, between the resignation of commissioner Paolo Piacenza and the formalization of the inspection commission of the MIT in Authority, he returns to speak Edoardo Rixi, deputy of Minister Matteo Salvini for Infrastructure and regional secretary of the League. At stake is the future of the airport which will welcome ministerial inspectors from the next few days (“the sooner they start working, the better”), but also the suspended present of the Region, with governor Toti under house arrest, and the post-European elections scenarios for the party .
Rixi, Piacenza’s resignation comes as a matter of opportunity, with the ongoing investigation which directly concerns him, but does it make sense to return to being secretary?
“It’s his choice. Piacenza was general secretary and with his appointment as commissioner he had put himself on leave. It is certainly not up to this ministry to make such positions lapse. If he decides to resign as secretary too, we will take note of it and move accordingly, but they are still different plans. The commissioner is a government appointment, while the other belongs to the Port Committee upon indication of the president of the ADSP”
I insist, given your involvement in the investigation, don’t you think it’s inappropriate for you to continue doing your work in Authority, regardless of your role?
“Let’s clarify one thing: Piacenza is not being sent to trial. If it is, we will deal with it. The statistical data shows that over 90 percent of investigations relating to abuse of office end in dismissal, acquittal or acquittal. The source is the Ministry of Justice.”
He could have also remained commissioner, with this reasoning.
“Piacenza put the interests of the system Authority ahead of personal interests. We are talking about areas that are affected by particularly important choices, investments and tensions. We need certainties, ports like Genoa and Savona cannot be blocked for an investigation. His position is delicate, he has made an institutional choice to move forward.”
In his place, Admiral Massimo Seno arrives from Rome, who according to some could have been among those eligible for the role of ministerial inspector. Is that so?
“It was one of the possibilities for the inspection commission, a profile of value agreed with the General Command of the Port Authorities of which he is the head of the Legal Affairs Department: a non-political but institutional figure, a judicial police officer who represents a guarantee of transparency also for those who are carrying out the investigation. He will arrive in Palazzo San Giorgio in the next few days”.
Will he be a pro tempore commissioner, or will he be able to hold out beyond the ferry?
“His is a pro tempore position. How long? It depends on the length of the investigation. This will be a phase of ferrying, but I can say that in the next few weeks the procedures for the selection of the presidents of the Port Authorities currently under administration or with presidents whose expiration will expire will be started. As per the legal process, it will take a few months.”
How and when will the next president be chosen? Will they wait for the next Regionals? Is it possible to do this, with a Region overwhelmed by investigations?
“The commissioner will certainly be there until the end of the year. In the event that governor Toti is no longer able to fully exercise his role, the new president of the ports of Genoa and Savona will be chosen as soon as a new regional administration is formed.”
If the port risks being blocked due to the investigations, don’t you think there is a risk that the Region will also be blocked? On the centre-right, continue on the path of all-out defense against requests for resignation.
“They are two different things. I know it may seem strange to some: in this country we are still in a democracy. The opposition tries to exploit the moment, but the continuity that we are carrying out in the Region is also a form of respect for the work of the Prosecutor’s Office. I repeat: we are in the process of preventive investigations, without any indictment. To date the only feasible thing is to carry forward the Regional Council along the path traced by a centre-right government which has changed Liguria for the better”.
However, you as allies could also make the decision. How long can the Liguria Region go without guidance?
“There will be the budget adjustment in July, at the end of the year it will be up to the Budget. If there were no votes, essential services to citizens would be blocked. Even for these steps, the Region needs to move forward. Politically, in the centre-right there has not yet been the possibility of making a comparison with Toti. And if he doesn’t resign because he thinks he shouldn’t, I don’t see why we should do it.”
The political issue, however, is there. How can an institution without political leadership survive?
“Let me be clear: we could go to elections tomorrow morning. Nobody fears the centre-right vote. I don’t think the same can be said on the left, where there isn’t a ready coalition. Once the European Championships and the run-offs have passed, we will discuss and talk about what to do given that 2025 is around the corner and would in any case be the natural expiration of the mandate”.
There will be no fear of the vote, but she continues to exclude herself from any candidatures. And at the European Championships the League struggled in Liguria as in Genoa.
“Given that between investigations and Mayor Bucci’s indisposition, in the last month it has not been possible to carry out the necessary electoral campaign. In Genoa and other cities like Milan we have paid for the dualism between FdI and Pd: the European vote does not bring coalitions into play, it polarises on parties. This is why Vannacci’s candidacy must be defended: it made us pierce the media wall which would otherwise have been polarized on Schlein and Meloni”.
Speaking of Vannacci, but as a Northern League member doesn’t it bother you to take the votes of those who voted for him for his allusions to the Decima Mas and all the post-fascist imagery? Are you in such a bad situation?
“Vannacci worked well as a soldier, representing this country for 30 years in all the most delicate international crises, from Afghanistan to Iraq. We decided to nominate him as an independent, even though we don’t share all of his ideas. There are others, however, who have nominated those who are currently on trial abroad while in Italy they have 4 final sentences and 29 complaints on their CV. On the RSI led by Prince Borghese. 570,000 people voted for the general, we need more respect for the voters.”
However, the Northern League deputies took the X of the Tenth right to the chamber. What do you think of Iezzi’s attack on Grillino MP Donno on Wednesday in the Chamber? Will you sanction him? The suspensions decided by Fontana are controversial
“Furgiuele explained that he was doing the You may believe it or not. Iezzi then you are a mild and very polite person who reacted to the provocation of the Grillino Donno who had just attempted to attack Minister Calderoli. A cowardly gesture because everyone in the Chamber knows the minister’s difficult health condition.”
Donno brought Calderoli a tricolor, Iezzi slapped him. Not quite the same thing.
“Believe me, if there had been Crosetto in Calderoli’s place, Donno would not have tried to forcefully wrap the minister in the tricolour. A lack of respect and a mocking attitude, you will agree. Whoever ended up in the middle of the brawl will explain to the dedicated commission how things really went. One thing is certain, we need more respect for the Chamber and the institutions. From everybody”.
: “But as Decima Mas, Furgiuele was an X-Factor and Donno’s provocation was a cowardly gesture”){kind=link}