«It was hard, but I felt affection. Now I renew the party»- Corriere.it

He entrusted himself “to Heaven”, to doctors, to his closest loved ones, to “my wife Marta, who has surpassed herself”, to the love of his people and even to the affection of his adversaries. But above all to his strength, which he feels he is rediscovering and which he will use – assures Silvio Berlusconi who is speaking again for the first time after 45 days of hospitalization at the San Raffaele in which he feared for his life – to continue lead Forza Italia. His party, of which he is keen to reconfirm himself absolute leaderwithout dolphins or successors.

Will continue the «renewal” of his movementannounces the blue leader, without “scrapping”, as will continue the commitment to “guard the center”, without chasing anyone: Matthew Renziif you want, come “on our side” but Forza Italia will not court him. And he looks to the future with optimism: Italians “are realizing” the“injustice” suffered by him on the judicial level for years and “they will trust us”.

President, first of all: how are you?

“I’m better thanks. I still have to recover my strength, but it’s only a matter of time».

It was tough, there was great concern about his condition: were you afraid of not making it?

“It was tough, but I’ve always been confident. As in other difficult moments, I entrusted myself to the help of Heaven and to the professionalism of the doctors and health personnel of San Raffaele, whom I will never stop thanking”.

His Martha, his children, his best friends: how important have they been in a moment like this? What did they pass on to her?

«Marta surpassed herself, she stood by me with unparalleled care and dedication, which can only be explained by the great love that binds us. Many times I had to beg her to rest and take care of herself, but she never left me for a minute. My children, my brother, my friends have also been very close to me, every day. In difficult times the love of a family is really the most important thing. But I would like to say one more thing.”

What?

«This time too I perceived the sincere friendship and affection, at times even touching, of many people, even strangers. All the political leaders, of the majority and of the opposition, have addressed me with words of good wishes and encouragement, for which I am truly very grateful. But then there was the emotional embrace of the blue people, of the militants and voters of Forza Italia, who inundated me with messages and affectionate demonstrations. If I got through this difficult moment well, I certainly owe it to them too.”

Are you ready to resume your job, and how? She had no qualms about showing her suffering on video as well, not an obvious choice.

«In truth, I have never stopped working, even from intensive care I have kept in contact with the leaders of Forza Italia, giving indications and suggestions on the electoral campaign for the administrative bodies. In this regard, I would like to appeal to the citizens of the Municipalities in which the ballot is held next Sunday and Monday: go and vote, because without the vote democracy dies and the future of Italy, of your cities, of your children dies. As for the future, we have many things to do and I will continue to do them, as always, at the helm of Forza Italia”.

Is it true that you are already thinking about a reorganization of the party, also in view of the European elections?

«The history of Forza Italia is one of continuous renewal, from 1994 to today. Forza Italia was born not only to prevent the Communists from taking over the government of the nation, but also to profoundly renew the policy. But for renewal to be credible we must first of all renew ourselves. We have always done it and we will continue to do it, obviously without scrapping anyone».

Are you satisfied with how Forza Italia was managed while you were in hospital? Is it a party that is learning to walk on its own?

«Forza Italia has an expert and authoritative national and local ruling class. But they are not and will not be alone, because I will naturally continue to fully exercise, as I have always done, my responsibilities as founder and leader of Forza Italia”.

How are relations with your allies today? And what space does Forza Italia have?

“They are absolutely excellent. Giorgia Meloni and Matteo Salvini have been close to me in recent weeks like true friends, proving that the relationship between us is not only political, but is also made up of a deep personal bond. Obviously, this does not mean that Forza Italia does not have a specific role. With the Democratic Party increasingly shifting to the left and the decline of the so-called Third Pole, which died before it was even born, the space in the center is widening and Forza Italia presides over it consistently, because we are the only truly liberal, Christian, guarantor, Europeanists, Atlanticists. We are the only Italian expression of the great center of European politics, the People’s Party».

Is a closer relationship with Renzi possible?

“Renzi often says the right things, but until he draws the political consequences from them, choosing our half of the field, we will not be able to go beyond occasional convergences in Parliament”.

Meanwhile, the government is moving forward: what should we focus on now?

«We need to continue along the path we took in the first few months: stabilize the cut in the tax wedge also to restart youth employment, implement the tax reform by moving towards the flat tax, continue working to increase minimum pensions up to 1,000 euro within the legislature, start the reform of justice along the lines indicated by Minister Nordio”.

With an unexpected emergency in Emilia-Romagna: what to do, how? Can Europe lend a hand?

«Any help from Europe is naturally precious. On our part, the commitment is total, starting with the suspension of all payments, bills, mortgages, tax and social security obligations and then the activation of the guarantee fund for small businesses, aid for the payment of rent and more. Faced with the dramatic images that come to us from Romagna, no effort is too great to help those populations”.

Do you believe in the climate emergency or as some on the right think it is an exaggerated alarm?

«I believe what the majority of the scientific community says as well as the evidence of the facts themselves. Climate changes are underway and it is reasonable to think that, for a significant part, they depend on man. So committing ourselves to safeguarding Creation, the world around us, which will be our legacy to future generations, is a duty that has nothing to do with ideological or political alignment issues. Another thing is to discuss the most effective means and their economic and social cost. A certain environmentalism has more to do with aversion to our model of civilization than with the defense of the environment».

As a TV man, what do you think of Rai to come? Do we need more space for centre-right faces?

“I’ve never liked putting the question like this. We need to guarantee pluralism by giving space to professionalism, without partisan labels. That’s what the government has pledged to do.”

But what future do you see for Forza Italia?

«For Forza Italia I see an increasingly important function, because we and only we are the liberal and Christian centre, which is indispensable in a European democracy and is an essential part of the governing coalition. In terms of consensus we have been penalized in recent years by the effects of a judicial persecution against me based on nothing and concluded with a series of acquittals, but which has seriously damaged us in terms of image. I believe that the Italians are gradually realizing this and that they will once again place their trust in us».

And how do you see the road our country is taking, between unexpected growth but also chronic structural and management problems?

«Italy, the country I love, has a great future, because ours is an extraordinary people, capable of true miracles. But we also have big problems to solve, starting with a truly unacceptable widespread poverty and the difficulty for young people to build a future for themselves. We need to reform the judiciary, streamline the bureaucracy, modernize the infrastructure. In short, we must make our country attractive for those who work and for those who create jobs. For the rest, we are already the most beautiful country in the world».

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