Italian President Appoints Center-Left Official as Premier
By ELISABETTA POVOLEDO // Published: April 24, 2013 // The New York Times
Italy's new prime minister Enrico Letta
ROME — President Giorgio Napolitano on Wednesday appointed Enrico Letta,
the deputy head of the Democratic Party, as prime minister designate
tasked with forming a government to lead the country out of weeks of
political impasse after inconclusive national elections.
Mr. Letta announced that he would consult with political leaders on
Thursday in a “fragile and unprecedented” political situation and ask
for their support.
“We paved the way to form a government that the country urgently needs
and has too long waited for,” said Mr. Napolitano soon after Mr. Letta’s
appointment.
.
Mr. Napolitano praised Mr. Letta’s cultural background, government
experience and international standing, calling his profile “excellent”
for the complicated task of guiding Italy in a turbulent time. He also
added that there was “no alternative” to his candidacy.
'
Mr. Letta listed unemployment and the economic crisis among the top
issues that the new government should address. He also said that Italy
needed to reduce the number of Parliament members and change the
electoral law, but also to restore the credibility of its political
class.
'
Mr. Letta, 46, is considered a moderate figure capable of reuniting the
embattled, center-left Democratic Party with caretaker Prime Minister
Mario Monti’s Civic Choice group and the center-right. Mr. Letta is the
nephew of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s close aide, Gianni
Letta.
.
He has held government posts related to European and economic affairs.
He has also been a member of the European Parliament’s Committee on
Economic and Monetary Affairs.
Former Prime Minister Giuliano Amato had also been tipped by Italian
media as a front-runner. If Mr. Letta is named as prime minister
designate, he will be expected to choose ministers for his cabinet, and
then must win confidence votes in both houses of Parliament.
.
Mr. Napolitano was re-elected as president for an unprecedented second
term over the weekend after lawmakers failed to choose an alternative
candidate. His precondition for renewing his mandate was that the
political parties overcome their differences to form a government almost
60 days after the national vote.
.
Failure to do so would result in the dissolution of Parliament, new
elections and his own resignation, Mr. Napolitano warned lawmakers at
his inaugural address.
Elections at the end of February split Parliament into three mutually
hostile political groups and efforts by the Democratic Party, which
narrowly won the vote, to form a government were inconclusive.
.
Many Democratic Party lawmakers refused to make a deal with the party
headed by Silvio Berlusconi, the controversial political leader who has
dominated Italian politics for two decades, who was plagued by personal
scandals and criticism that his government’s economic policies did not
spare Italy the brunt of the euro-zone crisis.
.
The anti-establishment Five Star Movement, which won 25 percent of the
national vote riding on the wave of widespread frustration and anger
toward the political class, has refused to make any alliances.
.
Mr. Napolitano was elected for a second term on Saturday at the age of
87. He reluctantly accepted, chastising lawmakers for leading the
country into political paralysis, and telling them to quickly find a
compromise, or face the consequences “before the country.”
In a highly emotional speech, he also blasted politicians for failing to
approve urgent institutional and economic reforms, even as Italy’s
economy continues to contract. The country is in the grip of the worst
economic recession since the end of World War II.
.
The current crisis, Mr. Napolitano said, was the result “of a long
series of omissions and flaws, closures and irresponsibility.”
Though Italians have demanded deep-rooted changes of their political
leaders and a renewal of the existing political system, such demands
have fallen on deaf ears, he said. Responses have been slow in coming,
and distorted by political tactics and calculations.
.
Politicians have
ignored demands for greater transparency, moral rectitude and a
significant reduction in the cost of politics, he added.
Italian news media said Wednesday that some ministers in Mr. Monti’s caretaker government could retain their posts.
-
-
