The Forza Italia municipal councilor, Sergio Costanzo, ignites a vehement political controversy in Catanzaro, calling for the immediate resignation of the President of the Municipal Council, Gianmichele Bosco, and formally complaining to the Mayor Nicola Fiorita for a “serious incident” which occurred on the occasion of the inauguration of the renovated Aula Rossa of Palazzo De Nobili, which took place yesterday, Thursday 30 October 2025.
The fulcrum of the dispute raised by Costanzo concerns the absence of the Metropolitan Archbishop of Catanzaro-Squillace, Monsignor Claudio Maniago, and, consequently, also of the Vicar General of the Archdiocese, Don Salvatore Cognetti.
According to the Forza Italia Councilor, the official absence of the local ecclesiastical authority in an event of this magnitude, which represents the reopening of one of the symbolic places of the city’s democracy after a long restoration, constitutes a “lack of institutional respect” and, above all, a serious offense towards the entire Catanzaro community, to underline the absence due to the denial by the administration of the “normal” and ritual blessing!
Sergio Costanzo pointed the finger in particular at President Bosco, as the highest authority of the Assembly and responsible for organizing the inaugural ceremony.
“The absence of the Archbishop and the Vicar General at a ceremony that has a profound civic and social value is unacceptable. Those who hold institutional roles have the duty to ensure the utmost respect for all the components of the city, starting from the religious institutions which are a pillar for our community,” declared Costanzo.
Gianmichele Bosco’s request for resignation was motivated precisely by the alleged institutional negligence that would have led to the non-blessing of the highest offices of the Archdiocese from the list of guests.
At the same time, the Councilor also expressed his deep concern to the Mayor Nicola Fiorita, asking for a public clarification and immediate intervention to heal what is defined as a “serious institutional breach”. Costanzo underlined that the failure to bless denotes a serious superficiality in the management of institutional relations and a lack of consideration for the role that the Archdiocese plays for Catanzaro and its territory.
The episode immediately opened a heated debate in the city’s political landscape, with the majority called to promptly respond to the opposition’s accusations of lack of institutional respect.
Forza Italia Catanzaro: “The veto on the blessing of the Red Chamber is an affront. Bosco resigns”
The Council Group accuses the Fiorita Administration of institutional short-sightedness and lack of respect for traditions.
It was a celebration of bitter democracy for a part of Catanzaro politics. The inauguration of the renovated Aula Rossa of Palazzo De Nobili, which took place yesterday, Thursday 30 October 2025, was immediately overshadowed by a vehement political controversy raised by the Forza Italia Council Group, which unitedly called for the immediate resignation of the President of the City Council, Gianmichele Bosco.
The reason for the dispute, and the focal point of the dispute, is not a simple “failure to invite” the highest ecclesiastical authorities, but the inexplicable and serious choice to deny the “normal” and ritual blessing of the Council Chamber, a consolidated practice on the occasion of the opening of such a significant institutional place.
Councilor Sergio Costanzo was the first to raise the case, but the entire Forza Italia Council Group immediately embraced the line, defining the incident as a “serious and unspeakable institutional incident”. The absence of HE Monsignor Claudio Maniago, Metropolitan Archbishop of Catanzaro-Squillace, and of the Vicar General Don Salvatore Cognetti, was not accidental, but rather a direct consequence of this ideological choice.
“We express our strongest condemnation for the superficiality and culpable negligence demonstrated,” declares the Council Group. “The Archdiocese of Catanzaro-Squillace is a fundamental pillar for the moral and social fabric of our city. Excluding its highest representative, denying in advance a gesture of respect and tradition such as the blessing, is equivalent to lacking respect not only for ecclesiastical offices, but for all the citizens of Catanzaro.”
The finger is strongly pointed at President Bosco, as he is mainly responsible for organizing the event. “Those who hold institutional roles have the duty to ensure maximum respect for all components of the city, starting from religious institutions,” reads the Group’s note. The request for Gianmichele Bosco’s immediate resignation is, therefore, motivated by the alleged institutional negligence that led to what is perceived as a real “serious breach”.
At the same time, the Council Group expressed deep concern to Mayor Nicola Fiorita, asking for a public clarification and immediate intervention to heal an institutional wound which, according to the opposition, tarnishes the image of the Municipality.
FDI: Failure to bless the city council room, a serious fall in institutional style
The failure to bless the city council hall inaugurated last night after several years of work due to a major collapse represents a very serious fact and in line with that phenomenon which, in accordance with political correctness, has become a true civil and cultural denial of our roots and our tradition. This decision would appear to be attributable to the will of the President of the municipal council Bosco.
It is tradition in our nation, therefore also in the city of Catanzaro, that on these occasions the religious blessing is celebrated in harmony with a common feeling which fortunately still appears to be a majority in our society.
A serious fact, a lapse in style from an institutional point of view which is not formal but substantial. We ask ourselves whether respect for all civil and religious sensitivities can and must necessarily pass through the denial of one’s own cultural identity.
Something that unfortunately represents not an isolated phenomenon since in our city only a few days ago the Magna Graecia University, culturally aligned with political correctness, decided to dedicate a prayer space to Islamic students in the university.
Therefore, the process of Islamization of public and civil spaces about which Oriana Fallaci has written several times seems to be taking hold in Catanzaro too.
What will the next step be? Abolish the patronal feast of San Vitaliano? Will Mayor Fiorita and President of the Bosco municipal council, as the highest civil authorities in the city, continue to follow the Naca procession on Good Friday? Of course not! They will obviously continue to deploy all their political hypocrisy.
Perhaps not even Giovannino Guareschi, the brilliant creator of Don Camillo and Peppone, would have imagined something like this for Catanzaro.
The city council room is also called the “Red Room” and perhaps for this reason it was blessed!