Campaign For A Living Venice

There is only one way for the center-left to waste this opportunity: to be divided

[Ed. Note: Pier Paolo Baretta was a candidate for mayor of Venice in 2020]

By Pier Paolo Baretta

July 17, 2024

The legal issue which heavily involves the Venetian administration has now exploded and will run its course. Thus I will not go into the merits of the investigation in the slightest, except to remind Northern League member Bazzaro of the harsh attack he made on me when, on the occasion of the first municipal council meeting after the outcome of the 2020 vote, I, together with the other councilors of opposition, raised the issue of the city’s need for clarification from the Mayor on the Pili issue. There was no clarification provided; indeed, the request provoked a harsh clash, because Brugnaro and his men refused any discussion of the matter and resorted to insults.

However, the scenario that has opened up now requires clear institutional and political management. On an institutional level: the size of the investigation (the Mayor is under investigation; a Councilor has been arrested; officials and top management of subsidiaries are involved) is such that the city is objectively without certain and reliable guidance. The question here is not whether Brugnaro and his men are innocent or not, but rather if they are able to govern the city under these conditions. It’s hard to think so.

The international events that Venice has ahead of it in the coming weeks and the autumn administrative deadlines make presentable and reliable governance for the city necessary and unpostponable. As they say in these cases: it’s nothing personal, and, I would add, nothing political, but the resignation of the Mayor and the council cannot be avoided. A government commissioner will come, and new elections will be prepared (moreover, the natural deadline is in just over a year). This is democracy.

On a political level, the investigation causes an objective acceleration for everyone, such as the outgoing majority, which has had to look for a replacement for Brugnaro, who is not eligible for re-election due to the expiry of his mandates. Not a simple operation given that the Mayor’s centralizing personality prevented him from designating an heir. In any case, it’s better for them this way, since given the events, the closer you are to the sun, the more you get burned… In addition to this are the League and FdI’s unconcealed desires to take Venice. However, the current unprecedented scenario forces everyone to come out into the open, both in defending Brugnaro or not, and in dealing with a situation in which the long wave that still accompanies the right in Venice is objectively compromised. The “savior” Zaia himself, being the good politician that he is, could smell something burning…

On the opposite side, the center-left or broad field (let’s not get lost in the definitions!) has a real opportunity to regain the government of Venice – provided that the legal issue does not become the only reason for mobilization. The mistakes of the Brugnaro Administration are clear: from the botched management of tourism to the lack of security and future prospects for Mestre, to the isolation of the suburbs, to name just the most glaring issues. Citizens must be reassured that not only a different city will emerge from this affair, but a better city.

In fact, beyond the schedule that will be established, the electoral campaign has really already begun. Therefore, all that remains for the opposition to do is to immediately meet at a common table where groups can share projects, programs and people. There is only one way for the center-left to waste this opportunity: to be divided!

Source: YtaliGlobal