If psycho-aptitude tests are to be
introduced they should apply not just to magistrates but to all
top public officials and those in positions of government,
Naples Chief Prosecutor Nicola
Gratteri said on Wednesday.
"If we want to do psycho-aptitude tests, they should be done for
all the top sectors of the public administration, for those with
government responsibilities and for those involved in the
management of public affairs," said Gratteri on the sidelines of
a press conference after the cabinet on Tuesday approved the
controversial introduction of psycho-aptitude tests for aspiring
magistrates.
By the same token, the Naples prosecutor said all those in top
public positions and government should be made to take drug and
alcohol tests because these substances can "not only alter their
reasoning but also make them blackmailable".
The president of magistrates union ANM Giuseppe Santalucia on
Tuesday described the introduction of psycho-aptitude tests for
magistrates as a "symbolic norm" aiming to insinuate that
administrators of justice need to be checked psychologically.
"It is an irrational norm that will come into force in 2026,"
continued Santalucia, adding that there is "room to convince"
and eliminate it.
However, Justice Minister Carlo Nordio defended the decision to
introduce the tests, insisting that there is no "encroachment"
or "interference" by the government on the judiciary and saying
there is "nothing wrong" with "people like doctors who have
responsibility for others' lives trying to understand how they
function and maybe correct themselves".
Nordio also said in the event of failure of the psycho-aptitude
tests prospective magistrates can sit the examination to enter
the judiciary up to four times.
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