Deputy Premier Luigi Di Maio on
Friday cancelled a planned trip to Corleone after a mayoral
candidate from his party there said he wanted to "open a
dialogue with the relatives of mafiosi".
Di Maio said "the State must be careful not to ever get close
to, not even in its image, those people."
The leader ofthe anti-establishment 5-Star Movement (M5S9,
who is also labour and industry minister, took the decision
after seeing a photo of the candidate, Maurizio Pascucci, with a
nephew of late boss Bernardo Provenzano.
Di Maio's visit was set up to support Pascucci's bid for
office.
Corleone was Provenzano's home, as it was of another late
boss of bosses, Totò Riina.
Parliamentary anti-mafia commission chair Nicola Morra, of
the M5S, said "I can only fully support Luigi Di Maio's
decision.
"His words show how the Movement has as its priority the
fight against the mafias and the support for the innocent
victims of them, victims who are sadly very many.
"We cannot accept any let-up or ambiguity...I repeat with
Luigi Di Maio that we absolutely do not want the votes of
mafiosi".
Pascucci said he might now pull his bid.
"I will talk with the meetups and make a decision shortly,"
he said.
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