Just yesterday evening I was writing the following sentences, in response to a comment on the post “The Right People“:
«I’m afraid in Italy we’ll never have true large coalitions but large parties coalitions. Take for example what is happening in these days: for the umpteenth time we’ll be called for a referendum about our electoral system. No one was speaking about that until last week: then someone suggested to combine the said referendum the same day of European Elections (P.S. the 6th and the 7th of june) to save money for the Abruzzo earthquake’s people. Lega Nord party opposed, maybe because they knew many people could vote against the present law (written by the Lega Nord minister Calderoli). It’s reported that if PDL and Lega Nord didn’t find an agreement today Berlusconi’s government could fall. Lega Nord is not in the PDL coalition and with its 10% of votes, in this occasion, held the reins of the country.»
«The fact no one was speaking about this until last week means the politicians like the status quo, in Italy referendum are won motivating people not to go voting: it’s better a majority bonus for a list of parties than for a list. So it’s better to vote for this referendum not in concurrence with something important like European elections, where all italians go voting.»
Today “Il Sole 24 ORE“, the most famous economic italian headline, reports that “… with the political menace of a referendum, advantages for the premier could be noticeable [...] an approved referendum would introduce in Italy a two-party system to the detriment of Lega Nord and third politic forces, this could be used to constraint a very competitive ally in the Nord.” And even more beautiful: “Between the German system and the ‘Porcellum’ (the Calderoli’s law, nda) there is no doubt Berlusconi and PDL prefere the status quo.“
I like reading the same words I said before on such an important headline!
In effect Massimo D’Alema, representative of Democratic Party and ex-prime minister, agrees with the one-year-shift proposal too, and today Lega Nord Minister of Interior Roberto Maroni stated he will choose the date consulting the PD (june the 21st or next year). Strange… in the first days of the polemic the PD asserted a strong NO to the Bossi-Tax (or the 400 million euros that could go wasted postponing the date).
Anyway, that being so, I don’t agree with the “Il Sole 24 ORE” analysis. In my opinion until this legislature will last it’s not Berlusconi having the whip hand but Umberto Bossi. With its ‘inside track’ (with PDL, but not in PDL) Lega Nord could play a ‘veto power’ on every law, every decision, with the menace of making the Government go home overnight.
→ Referendum of June the 21st, what is it for?
→ Elections: the right wing won but we all lost in a deeper way
→ Italian Referendum of June 21: there are no reasons to keep from voting
Umberto M. Meotto
[...] a lot of money, moreover thanks to the fact it wasn’t scheduled in coincidence with EU elections (Postponment of referendum in Italy). It’s the usual and very sad Italian habits of winning referendum by making them fail thanks to [...]
[...] UDC and IdV. But, to make his ally (Umberto Bossi, leader of Lega Nord) happy, Berlusconi firstly postponed the call and then asked his voters to abstain. To be more precise, he asked them to renounce taking the [...]