Economy Undersecretary Claudio
Durigon quit Thursday night after a 10-day-long hail of
criticism following the nationalist League MP's call for a park
in his home city, Latina, to be renamed after Arnaldo Mussolini,
the brother of Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.
The park in the city founded by Mussolini after he drained the
Pontine Marshes was previously named after Arnaldo Mussolini but
is currently named after Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino,
two anti-mafia prosecuting magistrates who were murdered by Cosa
Nostra in 1992.
In his resignation statement, the Latina-born MP said "I've
never been a Fascist but I'm sorry".
He apologised to victims of the mafia and their relatives.
The centre-left Democratic Party had led the calls for Durgon to
go saying apology of Fascism was banned by the Italian
Constitution.
Reports have also suggested Premier Mario Draghi exerted moral
suasion over Durigon's party boss, League leader Matteo Salvini.
Salvini said Durigon "is laving his post out of love for Italy
and the League, and not to slow down the action of the
government".
Durigon, who turns 50 next month, had been the architect of the
League's flagship 'quota 100' early retirement scheme, for which
Salvini reiterated his praise.
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