Translated automatically by AI from the Italian original.
SYRACUSE – He rejects the accusations, asserts his distance from the unlawful conduct revealed in the judicial files and firmly rules out resignation. In a tense Municipal council session, the mayor of Syracuse Francesco Italia took the floor at Palazzo Vermexio to address the fallout from Operation Nexus, the anti-corruption investigation that has sent a carabiniere to prison and placed the former deputy chair of the council, Concetta Carbone, under house arrest.
It was a resolute speech in which the mayor sought to clarify his legal and political position, responding to the fierce frontal attack launched by the opposition groups.
“No conviction, I will cooperate with checks but I will not resign”
Faced with calls from the opposition benches for his immediate resignation, Italia stressed the fundamental distinction between a procedural step and criminal liability:
“Several months ago I was granted an extension to the investigations,” the mayor Francesco Italia explained in the chamber. “I am not subject to any precautionary measure, I have not been searched and I have not been the target of any seizure. Being entered in the register of those under investigation is in no way a conviction; it is simply a formal step that opens an inquiry. I will cooperate with that inquiry calmly, but let me be clear: I will not resign over a mere entry in the register.”
Alleged lobby: “I never promised anything, they complained about me”
Addressing the wiretaps published by the press concerning an alleged lobby in the corridors of the Municipality, the mayor claimed to have maintained an impermeable stance:
“No report contains a single conversation in which I join that group or in which I promise anything,” Italia pointed out. “The same reports state that the people described as members of that group explicitly complained that they had never obtained anything from me. I am not, and never will be, the reference point for any system, and I will prove this in the appropriate forums.”
Continuing his account, the mayor did not shy away from the human and administrative choices linked to Concetta Carbone: “I do not deny the closeness; it would be false and cowardly. I chose her twice: first for the municipal executive and then for the list. The political responsibility for that choice is entirely mine.”
Checks on contracts and executive reset: only member Pierpaolo Coppa remains in office
To guarantee maximum transparency, the Municipality will launch an internal audit of every procurement procedure under scrutiny by the Public Prosecutor’s Office: “The authority will review every single contract relating to that work with its own bodies and will hand over to the judiciary everything that is requested.”
As for the reset of the municipal executive – a move criticised by the opposition and by the former member Salvatore Castagnino – Italia clarified how it happened: “I formally asked the government team to resign and all members immediately stepped down without any resistance. I asked only the member Pierpaolo Coppa (responsible for the Budget and Legality portfolios) to remain in office to ensure administrative continuity and transparency checks.”
