Tycoon is back and with the same humility as always to run for office in the European Parliament
At 82 years old, the former Italian Prime Minister believes that there is a 'lack of deep thinking about the world' in the European Parliament, which is why, out of a 'sense of responsibility', he decided to run for MEP. Convicted of fraud, he was unable to run for election for years, but now he is back because it is also necessary to 'change this government', as is clear from the Italian government, which is led by 'people with no experience'.
Playboy crooner cruise operator, television businessman, former owner of a football club, politician, three times prime minister, sentenced to seven years in prison for encouraging prostitution of minors and abuse of authority (sentence later reduced to four years, three of them pardoned by amnesty and one that did not even force him to be placed under house arrest) and another three years in prison for corruption, Silvio Berlusconi was prevented from running for public office. In 2013, the judge imposed a ban on the three-time prime minister, founder of Forza Italia, from holding public office and the law on corruption ordered his expulsion from the Senate at that time. He was also ineligible for six years.
Now, Berlusconi is back. With the same soap opera heartthrob smile, the same meticulously dyed and combed hair, the same confidence of someone who thinks they are unique and indispensable. Last year he also tried to be elected with his refounded Forza Italia, in a coalition with the League, Matteo Salvini's party, and the Brothers of Italy, which later disbanded so that Salvini could join the 5 Star Movement (M5S) in the current Government – the party led by Luigi Di Maio refused any coalition with Berlusconi because of his conviction for corruption.
Forza Italia's return to the Italian electoral stage was not what Berlusconi expected. The coalition failed to overcome the M5S and Forza Italia failed to be the right-wing party with the most votes. As usual, for someone who has never become accustomed to mea culpa throughout his life, the former prime minister quickly explained the result: the fact that he would be prevented from assuming the presidency of the Government if he were elected, due to his inability to hold office. public policies still in force. And for external reasons he justified the bad result at the polls.
Now, at 82 years old, Berlusconi is back and with the same humility as always to run for a position in the European Parliament, because for now there are no elections in Italy. When he announced his entry into the race for the European Parliament in January, he assured that he was moving towards Europe “out of a sense of responsibility”, because of the “lack of deep thinking about the world” currently in Brussels.
The businessman and politician who made us aware of the term flowers, with his extravagant parties that included underage prostitutes, speaks as if the world, Europe and Italy were much worse off since he resigned as leader of the Italian Government in 2011.
And this at a time when Karima El Mahrou or Ruby Heartstealer, the 17-year-old prostitute with whom he had sexual relations and reported the parties flowers that made Berlusconi fall from grace, seems to be coming back to bring him new headaches.
The Milan Public Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation this week to determine the veracity of the complaint by Ruby's former lawyer, Egidio Verzini, that Berlusconi had paid five million euros through banks in Mexico and Antigua and Barbuda to buy silence. Two million euros for the prostitute's then boyfriend, Luca Risso, and three million for Ruby, transferred to a bank in Dubai. Verzini – who had a terminal illness and resorted to assisted suicide last year – claimed that Berlusconi knew the prostitute was a minor.
Something that doesn't seem to keep the former prime minister up at night, whose self-confidence is an intrinsic characteristic of his personality, and he returns focused on his political career – even more so now that he no longer owns Milan. And despite launching himself into the race for the European Parliament, he did not stop criticizing the Italian Government, the real target of all his movements, in the announcement of his candidacy: “We have to change this Government, which includes 5 Estrelas, which is led by people who They have no experience or competence,” he said.
“They are like the gentlemen of the communist left in 1994,” said Berlusconi, referring to the opponents he defeated in his first election.
By António Rodrigues/Newsplex
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