Bertolaso 'available' to run for mayor

(ANSA) - Rome, January 20 - Former head of Italy's civil protection agency Guido Bertolaso on Wednesday said he told head of centre-right Forza Italia party Silvio Berlusconi he's "available" to run for Rome mayor.
    "It was proposed to me, let's say as a possibility, something that would go beyond parties, like a civic list, but we'll see," Bertolaso said.
    "The city on its knees needs a manager".
    "The situation in the city is dramatic, the challenge is forbidding, but that's why it's even more necessary to have a manager who's an expert in emergencies to face it," Bertolaso said.
    He called the March primaries "a good idea" but "to participate you have to have a party card, and I only have a season pass for AS Roma and a blood donor card".
    "The challenge here goes beyond parties, beyond old models.
    We'll see".
    Bertolaso is currently on trial for manslaughter in connection with the 2009 earthquake in L'Aquila which killed 309 people.
    "There are only a few hearings left and you'll see I'll be acquitted, because there was no crime committed".