Centre-right Forza Italia
(FI) leader and media magnate Silvio Berlusconi said Friday the
anti-establishment 5-Star Movement (M5S) would only be capable
of cleaning the toilets if they worked for his Mediaset empire.
"They're people who've never done anything in life: in my
firm I'd hire them to clean the toilets," he said.
Berlusconi said M5S leader Luigi Di Maio has "the gift of
the gab, I can't deny it, but he has never done anything good
for himself, for his family, for the country. We can't entrust
Italy to people like him".
The M5S) replied to Berlusconi's taunt by saying it was
better to earn an honest wage cleaning toilets than to do do
deals with the mafia.
"Better to live honestly, perhaps thanks to 'cleaning
toilets', rather than doing deals with the #Mafia. Do you
understand, Silvio?," tweeted M5S Senator Nicola Morra.
Earlier, Berlusconi emphatically ruled out the prospect of an
agreement with the M5S despite his ally, rightwing populist
League leader Matteo Salvini, negotiating with M5S leader on
precisely that.
"No agreement is possible with the M5S, a party that does not
know the ABC of democracy," Berlusconi after arriving in Molise
ahead of elections in the southern region.
"They feel social envy, they are made up of unemployed people
and represent a danger for Italy".
The M5S has told the anti-migrant, Euroskeptic League, the
biggest party in the centre-right coalition, that it must dump
FI and fellow alliance partner Brothers of Italy (FdI) to make a
deal for the formation of a new government possible.
Berlusconi said he was disturbed by developments.
"Great confusion reigns," Berlusconi said.
"The Italian people voted very badly.
"I'm following everything with disgust. It's going from bad
to worse".
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