Populists ride wave of anger after bridge tragedy
ROME: In the aftermath of last week’s disastrous collapse of the Morandi Bridge in Genoa, Italy’s populist government has been riding a wave of public anger – in a move which could backfire.
Although Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte was first on the scene hours after the disaster, his two deputies, Matteo Salvini of the far-right League and Luigi Di Maio of the populist Five Star Movement, have taken centre stage in the government’s response.
And during their many appearances – at impromptu press conferences by the rubble, outside hospitals, on the radio, on Facebook lives around the clock – the pair have vied to outdo each other in their response.
One demanded the cancellation of motorway operator Autostrade per l’Italia’s contract for the stretch of road through the northern city of Genoa, while the other said all its concessions should be taken away.
One urged resignations at the top of the company, the other said they should be jailed.
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In response to an offer of 500mil (RM2.36bil) from Autostrade to help rebuild the bridge, Di Maio said the government “does not accept handouts from Autostrade”.
“We insist on proper compensation,” he added in a Facebook post at the weekend.
“There’s no desire for revenge in Genoa but there is a need for JUSTICE,” read one of many tweets posted on Salvini’s account on Monday during a TV interview.
A particular target of the two men’s ire has been the Benetton family, who control 30% of the Atlantia infrastructure group, which in turn owns Autostrade per l’Italia.
The family are one of the country’s most prominent business success stories but for Di Maio and Salvini they represent an elite which is indifferent to the lives of the ordinary Italians that the pair claim to represent.
In addition, Di Maio and Salvini have claimed that the Benetton family has made several political donations, in particular to former premier Matteo Renzi of the centre-left Democratic Party (PD) – a charge Renzi firmly denies.
In an unusual reversal of roles after a crisis, it is the opposition that has been calling for unity and calm.
Former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, who has now been eclipsed by Salvini as the main figure on the right, said all arguments “should be put to one side”.
And Renzi has also sought to calm the debate.
“In the face of tragedy, a civilised nation should come together instead of dividing itself,” he said, while insisting that those responsible “should pay every last cent”. — AFP