Rome mayoral hopeful Roberto
Giachetti of the ruling centre-left Democratic Party (PD) on
Wednesday responded to anti-establishment 5-Star Movement (M5S)
MP Paola Taverna's remark Tuesday that the mayoral candidates
put forward thus far are evidence of a "conspiracy" to make the
M5S win the elections.
"They're always victims of a conspiracy," said Giachetti,
who is the favourite to win PD primaries to replace Ignazio
Marino, forced out by the PD last year after an expenses
scandal.
"Ask them, I'm not in their party," he said of the M5S.
On Tuesday, Taverna said the centre-right's choice of
former civil protection chief Guido Bertolaso to run, and the
PD's likely choice of Giachetti, had left her "perplexed".
"It's incredible to manage to propose candidates like this
to the Romans," Taverna said Tuesday in an interview on Radio
Cusano Campus.
"I'm thinking there might be a conspiracy underway to make
M5S win in Rome," she said.
Taverna said given that Italian Premier Matteo Renzi and
Lazio Regional Governor Nicola Zingaretti are both members of
the PD, and since Rome depends on state and regional funding,
the "conspiracy" is to make M5S win in order to "take funds away
from and make fools of (the M5S)".
Taverna said the M5S would announce its choice for Rome
mayoral candidate "next week".
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