Clash in the Chamber over the Romano case: the council proposes denying the seizure of correspondence

The opinion of the Committee for Authorizations, which proposes to deny the authorization for the seizure of the correspondence of Deputy Francesco Saverio Romano (Nm), arrives in the Chamber. The request was made by the Public Prosecutor's Office of Palermo as part of a criminal proceeding in which the parliamentarian is under investigation for complicity in the crimes of corruption for acts contrary to official duties and disturbed freedom of bidding.

Explaining the reasons, the president of the Committee Enrico Costa (FI) emphasized that "the conditions allowing for the restriction of the parliamentarian's communicative sphere are not met". Furthermore, he added, "the necessity and indispensability of the requested measure are not demonstrated". "The request from the Prosecutor's Office", finally, "appears today to lack an adequate evidentiary foundation".

Supporting the Committee's position was, among others, Maurizio Lupi, leader of Noi Moderati, who recalled a "decisive fact", namely "the order of the investigating judge of the Palermo Court on December 2, which excluded not only the precautionary needs but also the presence of serious indications of guilt against Honorable Romano. This is not about defending someone but about questioning whether Parliament can authorize a seizure of correspondence that risks becoming an exploratory tool, that is, in the search for evidence, rather than verifying an already existing evidentiary framework".

In contrast, the intervention of Filiberto Zaratti (Avs) stated: "We believe that the constitutional and legislative prerequisites for authorizing the seizure of correspondence are present. We will vote against also to protect the right to defense of Honorable Romano". Daniela Torto (M5s), announcing that the Movement will vote "against the rapporteur's proposal and in favor of the Prosecutor's request", hoped that "Honorable Romano could leave the Chamber at the time of the vote, to avoid an obvious conflict of interest". This suggestion was contested by the benches of Forza Italia.