What we have dubbed Federico Basile’s “D-Day”, that is, the day of his resignation, has arrived. In reality, the mayor still leaves the nature of the final decision, whether or not to leave the tricolor band early, pending. The press conference, broadcast live on RTP, will be held this morning at the Municipality and will focus on generic “communications to the city”, but everyone is ready to bet on what these communications actually are.
The news, partly also surprising, is that today Cateno De Luca will not be alongside Basile. The mayor will be alone to explain to the city the reasons for his decision, because they want to reduce the poison on the weight that the will of the leader of the South called North, the main architect of every political strategy, had on the decision itself. We will almost certainly talk about the need to strengthen the “single-minded” path of this administration and how this need comes from a moment of renewal of forces also and above all in the city council. It is not known how much there will be talk about the national and regional scenarios, but they certainly have an impact. There is certainly a lot of anticipation, for the announcement, clearly, but above all for the explanations that will accompany it.
Outside Palazzo Zanca, however, few have any doubts about how it will end and, not surprisingly, the city now has an electoral campaign atmosphere, as also emerged last night in Scirocco, during a lively political episode of the RTP talk hosted by Emilio Pintaldi. An episode in which there were representatives of various parties, several former Deluch supporters and even some potential challengers to Basile-bis. «Why fail to fulfill the full mandate? I don’t think there are any problems with the city council – began the Renzian senator Dafne Musolino –. If there is a political strategy, let it be made clear, also because Basile is the metropolitan mayor and there are extremely dangerous situations on the provincial roads, above all those of the Masses”. There are those who hypothesize an all-female ticket in the center-right, with Senator Musolino and Antonella Russo of the Democratic Party as protagonists, who recalls that «Basile was elected mayor of everyone, he is an institutional subject and the institution must be respected. Personal political reasons cannot determine this decision. Am I a candidate? I am available, like every party leader.”
Another ex is Alessandro De Leo, now a Forza Italia MP, according to whom «the problem is political: this administration has lost almost ten city councilors, there is a lack of internal dialogue, but there is a lack of dialogue with the city. On Monday there will be a meeting of the city coordination of my party, I ask to immediately open a dialogue with the civic projects of Marcello Scurria and Gaetano Sciacca”. The new name in the centre-right house, where Scurria’s ratings remain high, is however another and surprisingly: the former rector Pietro Navarra (formerly Pd, then with a flashback in Forza Italia, off the radar for a couple of years). Suggestion or concrete hypothesis? More will be known soon.
The group leader of the Brothers of Italy, Libero Gioveni, dispels any alibi: «The city council certainly did not make the administration work with the handbrake on, we have always been responsible opposition. Furthermore, a new regulation was made which canceled the effect of the abstention. The real reason for this resignation? De Luca would like to secure Messina to present himself with greater bargaining power in next year’s national and regional elections.” And regarding the candidacy, «Fratelli d’Italia will also propose its own name».
Vincenzo La Cava, today a member of Ismaele La Vardera’s Controcorrente, is also a former Deluchian: «Controcorrente – he reiterates – will not support anyone, it will make its own list with its own mayoral candidate». The one who remains Deluchian is the councilor Pippo Trischitta: «The strength of De Luca and Basile was the monochrome, but can there be a monocolour constantly with the hope that the other party abstains instead of not voting against?». A theme that this morning, we can bet, will be proposed again.