Somebody Needs To Tell Silvio It’s Time To Go Home

On Saturday November 16th former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi relaunched Forza Italia (Come on Italy), the centre-right party that brought him to power in 1994. The announcement was made during a national convention, where about 600 delegates renewed their trust in the former Prime Minister and abandoned the People of Liberty party (PDL). Deputy Prime Minister Angelino Alfano and several other members of PDL did not attend the meeting and later confirmed that they will continue to support the left-right coalition government led by Prime Minister Enrico Letta. This way, the government might be able to maintain a reasonable number of PDL ministers and continue its mandate, at least temporarily. Berlusconi and his followers will instead represent the new opposition party with the clear intention of bringing down the coalition.

During his speech, the historical leader of Forza Italia attacked the European Union and the austerity policies imposed by Germany, blaming the government for accepting and implementing their demands. He can’t stand any more tax increases, he ranted. Additionally, with reference to the upcoming vote that will likely dictate his expulsion from the senate due to his past criminal convictions, he announced that he will no longer be able to guarantee his cooperation with the Democratic Party (PD) within the coalition. It is difficult, Berlusconi said, to remain allies with someone, who he referred to as “communists”—yes, communists— who want to kill you politically. As if communism had anything to do with his trials and allegations, that in the past 20 years have resulted in charges of sex with an underage prostitute, tax fraud and abuse of office, just to name a few.

Image credit: alessio85

Despite his anti-Europeanism, it appears clear that Berlusconi’s latest act of rebellion is really just part of his survival tactic. He is in fact expected to serve a year of community service for his conviction for tax fraud, but most importantly he is currently facing the exclusion from the senate. If, as it seems to be the case, the senate will vote in favour of his dismissal, the former Prime Minister risks losing his political influence which has so far allowed him to defend himself against other criminal cases. By ordering the resignation of his ministers and abandoning the coalition, Berlusconi is therefore sending a clear message to all the political organisations in Italy: you isolate me, I will take you down with me.

Apart from making a 77-year-old man look like a childish brat, the real problem with this resolution is that Berlusconi is not simply threatening a political body, but he is rather endangering his own country, including all the Italians who voted for him in 20 years of political activity. As it has been suggested by Mario Draghi, President of the European Central Bank, the on-going political crisis is one of the main reasons hindering economic growth in Italy—the reason for unemployment and tax increase. Moreover, this has enormous consequences for the Euro-zone as well, Italy being the third biggest economy in the EU. Nonetheless, the man doesn’t seem to be bothered by the consequences of his irresponsible behaviour. He’s, after all, a great business man and will do anything in his power to protect his own interests.

At this point, one may reasonably wonder why, if EU institutions and even I are aware of the dangers of having Berlusconi as an ally, he is still allowed to be part of the political scene. Admittedly, the never-ending story of Berlusconi might be romantically justified as the result of his charismatic leadership within a democratic system. Simply put, Italy has had its chances to get rid of Berlusconi, and yet the majority of people have made him Prime Minister for nine years in total. In the inconclusive February 2013 elections, he even managed to secure 29.1 percent of the popular vote and 124 seats in the House, despite being on trial for his expensive relationship with a “young lady”. It is clear then that, perhaps because of his persuasive character and  financial resources, he’s still a popular choice among voters and for this reason, so along as he stays in politics, even his opponents will need him.