“Bonaccini? Choosing someone else would be incomprehensible. Genoa, copyable model»- Corriere.it

Giovanni Toti, president of Liguria, has accumulated a “consolidated” experience of emergencies and related commissioner management. And based on this experience, he has two very clear opinions: «Emergencies are answered with one control room which is effective if it proceeds through sharing and comparison, not if it is imposed by decree. And the president of the Region must be at the top of this structure».

President Toti, you have been appointed commissioner several times to manage emergencies of various kinds.
«Unfortunately, yes, by several governments, of different political affiliations. From hydrogeological instability following the floods of 2014, to the storm surge that devastated the Tigullio coast, to the emergency after the collapse of the Morandi bridge, to the minor flood in the Bormida valley. Different events that have taught us a lot, however.”

And staying on the topic of floods?

«Events like the one in Emilia-Romagna have two enemies: the unpredictability of the consequences of meteorological uncertainty, which is not always ponderable, and the ideological environmentalism that these events provoke».

Are you angry with those who detect, behind the ever more frequent calamities, the too intensive exploitation of the territory?

“No. I take it out on those who use these events as a picklock of political struggle or, worse, of the system. If the rivers are overflowing today, the solution is not to abandon the machines and subvert the development model. Afflictive measures against the cicada man who has impoverished what surrounds him, not applicable and which, moreover, would have no immediate effect ».

What’s the solution though?

«In the immediate term, it means doing more works, not less, to minimize the risks. And of course organize a more effective civil protection system. The interventions at the bed of the Bisagno have halved the risk of flooding in the event of a repeat of the rainfalls of 2014. The resources cannot be used only to compensate for the damages».

With regard to the method, is the «Genoa model», applied for the Morandi bridge, replicable in Emilia-Romagna that ended up under water?

“Certainly. Because the Genoa model simply means coincidence of objectives and capacity for dialogue, a firm intention to get along between the various levels of territorial government: central, regional, municipal. In short, a gigantic control room that is not imposed by decree but is built through comparison and sharing. It worked. Rebuilding the bridge in two years was such a success that it overshadowed other minor achievements made in my region, without interruption, despite changing central and local governments in the meantime».

If the model is Liguria, in Emilia-Romagna, should the commissioner for reconstruction be Bonaccini?

“Without ifs and buts. It would be incomprehensible to choose to nominate someone else».

Are you speaking in the name of the municipality belonging to the category of regional presidents?

“No, I speak in the name of common sense. The president of the Region has the delegation on civil protection and concurrent power on infrastructure, transport, energy policies. And he knows the area. Appointing someone else as commissioner, a prefect for example, would inevitably lead to conflicts between levels of government. It would represent an element of complication rather than facilitation of a process that we want to streamline».

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