Marino urges AMA to fire nepotistic hires

(ANSA) - Rome, September 18 - Rome Mayor Ignazio Marino said Friday waste management company AMA must fire employees who were hired thanks to nepotism. "AMA must now get on with the firings, as is right and lawful," he said after a court said earlier in the day that it had found hires were made based on "cronyism and arbitrary reasons".
    "This confirms what we always said," Marino added. "AMA must now proceed to the necessary firing of staff employed under work contracts the court has found to be null and void".
    The same court on May 27 sentenced Franco Panzironi, formerly the powerful head of AMA, and three other senior AMA managers to five years three months on abuse of office and other charges in connection with nepotism in hiring.
    Also convicted were former personnel manager Luciano Cedrone, former examining commission president Bruno Frigerio, and ex-legal office chief Gianfrancesco Regard.
    Panzironi had been arrested previously in connection with the so-called Rome Mafia investigation into a crime syndicate made up of businessmen, gangsters and politicians that allegedly muscled in on lucrative Rome city contracts.