ROME: Italian leftist leader Pier Luigi Bersani struggled to form a government yesterday as his rival Silvio Berlusconi said he was ready to return to the polls after elections that left the country in political gridlock.
Bersani began talks to try and build support despite his lack of a parliamentary majority, but Berlusconi told tens of thousands of supporters that the leftist was destined to fail and that new elections should be called.
“I do not deny this is a difficult task but I think other roads would be even more difficult and even more precarious,” Bersani said. The leftist has so far ruled out a “grand coalition” with Berlusconi and is instead trying to form what would be a minority government reliant on votes from other parties in parliament.
Analysts say another option would be a technocratic government similar to the outgoing one led by Prime Minister Mario Monti, a former European commissioner. Bersani got the official nod on Friday from President Giorgio Napolitano, who asked him to report back “as quickly as possible” on his bid to govern after the inconclusive elections on February 24 and 25.
Bersani’s coalition won a majority in the lower house but no party won in the upper house — a first in Italy’s post-war history. Berlusconi’s centre-right coalition came in a very close second. The scandal-tainted former prime minister told a rally in central Rome on Saturday that he was ready for fresh elections.
“I see you’re all ready for a new election campaign and this time we’ll win big!” Berlusconi told the crowd, adding: “I’m ready too!” “If Bersani continues this absurd attempt at a minority government, he should know that our opposition will be tough,” he said. “If they fail, then we should not waste the country’s time and we should return to vote immediately.”
Berlusconi has supported a coalition with the centre-left, calling it “a government of national concord”.
Supporters were also rallying against what they said was the victimisation of the 76-year-old billionaire tycoon.
Berlusconi over the past year has been convicted of tax fraud and breaking state secrecy laws and is also on trial for having sex with an underage prostitute and abuse of office.
Italian media said Bersani could finish up his consultations on Tuesday or Wednesday and return to Napolitano on Wednesday or Thursday to say whether he has enough support for a government.
Afp
