24 September 2007

Visco, a step back

I’m publishing a letter that I sent today to il Corriere

“Dear editor
Piero Ostellino’s thoughts in yesterday’s il Corriere editorial about the Visco - Finance Police situation, deserve some attention.
Rome’s prosecutor has asked for the archiving of the criminal proceedings against Visco saying that even though he has done an “illegitimate act”, he has not however committed an “illegal act” that needs to be taken to the criminal courts. That is even though the act is illegal, it doesn’t carry a criminal sanction. In other words, the Deputy Minister, has anyway violated a principle of law, to which – in one (to say to Ostellino) – that can only mean a penalty that can and must, from time to time, be evaluated in other environments: on a civic level (and in fact General Speciale is taking steps to ask for compensation); on an administrative level, in relation to the effectiveness of the solutions adopted (the substitution of the General himself); on the level of political opportunity, with particular reference to the continuation of the arrangement by which the Deputy Minister has political responsibility for the Finance Police.
It is in fact this last aspect that makes me reinforce the idea of the illegitimacy of the behaviour of the Deputy Minister pointed out by the magistracy that undermines the relationship of trust that must exist of necessity between him and the Finance Police for which he has political responsibility. Thus, it is evidently the right moment for a step back (at least as regards the specific responsibility that is under discussion).
Such a decision could be a precursor to, or could take place at the same time as, another more important act of political responsibility of the whole government: the reduction of the number of undersecretaries and deputy ministers from the current 102 to not more than 50. And above all the reduction to no more than 15, the number of ministries (perhaps starting in fact with the Ministry of Infrastructure that I am leading and which is proving to be an anachronism keeping it separate from the Ministry of Transport.)
It would be a great wave of innovation that our Government needs now if it wants not just to survive but also to be credible.”

Posted by Antonio Di Pietro in Justice