Honoured to hold the post. Primaries? Straight away. And clear words on security. The leader of Progetto Civico speaks out

Rome. “The primaries? If that dreadful new electoral law is passed, they’ll be inevitable. And we must hold them as soon as possible – organise them in September so we can vote in October: a great celebration of democracy.” Alessandro Onorato, leader of Progetto Civico Italia and councillor for Tourism, Sport, Fashion and Major Events in the Gualtieri administration, is not afraid to gauge public support at polling stations; last night he was attending a fundraising event at the Hotel Cardo. On the very subject of primaries, however, PD secretary Elly Schlein, interviewed by this newspaper, seems to be playing for time (“we’ll decide in September, after the programme has been finalised”). And then: the new proposed law places the issue of coalition-building at the centre. Italia Viva leader Matteo Renzi, thanks to the Russo amendment (against fragmentation below 3 per cent), would have an easier time of it than the other key players at the centre of the centre-left. Onorato, would you join forces with him? “If all the forces in the field that do not identify with the current parties were willing to create a new political entity, setting aside any ambitions for hegemony, it could be an excellent solution. Renzi, on the other hand, says: ‘I’ve got the signatures, I’ve got the grassroots support, I’ve got the funds; if you want to, come with me.’ Thanks, but no thanks. Not least because the movement we’ve brought together is huge: more than 10,000 members, around 800 local councillors. All people who, if they’d wanted to, would already be in the PD, Italia Viva, the M5S or the AVS. If they aren’t there, it’s because they don’t want to be; they want to bring a genuine breath of fresh air to the centre-left.” Then: Elly Schlein, in her interview with Il Foglio, doesn’t rule out Calenda. And Onorato? “It’s Calenda himself who has chosen the third-party route, a route that makes no sense today. A vote for Calenda would be a disguised vote for Meloni.” Let’s return to the primaries: what if the idea of not holding them were to prevail? “There would be another way, with a law requiring the party programme to name a presidential candidate. We could put forward an authoritative figure who represents us all, not a prime minister.” A ‘placeholder’, in short, to be replaced after the vote? “It wouldn’t be a placeholder. We could learn from the experience of the referendum, uniting around the defence of the Constitution. Under the Constitution, the nomination of the Prime Minister is the responsibility of the President of the Republic. We would therefore simply nominate a guarantor of our course – the Prime Minister, after the vote, based on the results, will be nominated in full freedom by Sergio Mattarella. Italy does not have a presidential system, but there is a tendency to polarise the conflict between two figures. One of them will be Meloni. Well, watch out for Vannacci.” Might Italians prefer him? “Vannacci says what Meloni and Salvini used to say before they won and then failed: he’s a clone. But if he reaches 7 or 10 per cent, it’s not because only crazy fascists are voting for him. Let’s take a good look at ourselves.” On the issue of security, for example, Onorato says: “On the right, security is a snapshot of the Meloni government’s failure, but the left cannot simply say that to have a safer country you need to invest in education, in young people, in the suburbs and in the rehabilitation of prisoners. That’s true, of course, but we cannot ignore the real issue: we need greater policing in areas where women feel unsafe returning home in the evening and commuters on regional trains. And we must invest in the police force. As for immigration, legal immigration is fine, but the centre-left must also state clearly that irregular immigrants who commit crimes must be sent back to their own countries.” In Bologna, a man, Abderrahim Fakir, died whilst in police custody. Was Mayor Matteo Lepore right to immediately call a public rally, which was subsequently infiltrated by violent protesters? “When faced with events that shake one’s own city, it is only right for a mayor to call a public gathering to stand in solidarity with the citizens. What is unacceptable is that in Bologna, as in Turin, Rome and Milan, a network of protesters specifically targets the police for attack. I prefer not to pass judgement from the comfort of my sofa: it is not easy to manage the arrest of people with mental health issues or under the influence of drugs – a common occurrence, unfortunately, around railway stations and in the suburbs of many cities. Dying as Fakir did is unacceptable, and it is right that the judiciary should get to the bottom of it. But I do not feel I can condemn the police officers who intervened.” Progetto Civico has a busy summer ahead: “They think they can discourage us with ad hoc regulations, but there are two things we local councillors know how to do better than anyone else: collect signatures and win votes. We’ve been instrumental in securing victory in many cities and governing effectively. We deal with complex issues, and in Rome, as in other places, we’ve already secured a very broad base of support.”

Marianna Rizzini