Tensions between the Lega and the Brothers of Italy over the Copasir presidency
Because there are differences between Salvini's League and Meloni's Brothers of Italy on the presidency of the Copasir (committee for the security of the Republic). Facts, names, indiscretions and opinions of jurists (mostly in favor of the position of the Brothers of Italy)
“The law establishing Copasir entrusts the presidency to the opposition. I don't see how anyone can think of clearly violating a very clear law ”. Giorgia Meloni was clear in commenting, to the AdnKrono s, on the all-internal controversy in the center right about the stalemate in the parliamentary control body of the secret services currently chaired by the Northern Leagueist Raffaele Volpi. The name chosen by Giorgia Meloni for the role of Copasir president is that of Senator Adolfo Urso , president of Farefuturo and currently vice president of Copasir.
What is Copasir
Copasir , Parliamentary Committee for the Security of the Republic, is an organ of the Parliament of the Republic that exercises parliamentary control over the work of the Italian secret services. Copasir verifies that the activity of the Security Information System carries out its activities in compliance with the Constitution and the laws, in the exclusive interest of the Republic. It was established in 2007 to replace the previous Copaco (Parliamentary Control Committee on Secret Services). It has a bicameral composition, that is, it is made up of 5 senators and 5 deputies chosen in such a way as to guarantee equal representation of the majority and of the opposition. The 2007 intelligence sector reform law 124 provides, in art. 30, that the presidency and half of the members of the committee belong to political opposition forces.
The precedent of Massimo D'Alema
The law, therefore, speaks clearly. Since Brothers of Italy are the only parliamentary opposition force, the presidency would fall, de plano, to the party of Giorgia Meloni . Dal Carroccio, however, are resisting, not wanting to give up a chair of absolute importance within the institutional system. In support of his thesis, the party led by Matteo Salvini, some experts cite the case of Massimo D'Alema whose party, during the Monti government, passed from opposition to government but the former foreign minister retained the position of Copasir . An insider points out: to be honest at the time Massimo D'Alema resigned, subsequently the presidency offices of the Chambers resolved, with the consent of the League , that being that of Monti an exclusively technical government without ministers or political undersecretaries and without even parliamentarians, he could stay. “The precedent is not fitting, because the ministers of that government were technicians – Giorgia Meloni told AdnKronos -. Today, however, we have a situation in which the president of Copasir should supervise ministers of his own majority or, in some cases, of his own party ”.
The constitutionalist Curreri: the presidency of Copasir rests with FdI
The question goes beyond the political sphere to end up on the bench of the constitutionalists. "From a legislative point of view, there is no doubt that the Copasir presidency rests with FdI, because it is the only party that has voted against trust in the Draghi government – says the constitutionalist Salvatore Curreri , professor at the Kore University of Enna, at AdnKronos -. I repeat, we must start from the assumption that legislative speaking, the rationale is clear: since it is a Control Commission, its leadership goes to a member of the opposition. Then, if the political forces believe, as they did in the case of D'Alema with the Monti government, that the current president enjoys a bipartisan esteem and Fdi agrees, then things can also remain as they are ”. To proceed in this sense, an agreement with Giorgia Meloni's party is necessary , which at the moment seems to be missing. “In this affair the right of veto has only Fdi – specifies the constitutionalist -. If Fdi is not there and claims the presidency of Copasir, the presidents of the Chamber and Senate can do nothing but implement this request ”.
Carrino (jurist): "D'Alema's precedent is not valid"
“A precedent is not valid, it cannot set aside a rule of law”, underlined Professor Agostino Carrino , professor of public law institutions at the Federico II University of Naples. “The rationale of the law, in fact, has a guarantee function on the part of Parliament which is a priority and certainly cannot be waived by a decision that is not taken unanimously by all political forces – continues the jurist at AdnKronos -. Only with the agreement of all parties can the rule that attributes the Copasir presidency to the opposition be waived.
Prof. Baldassarre: "D'Alema case, practice contrary to the norm"
D'Alema's case with the Monti government was a practice contrary to the law so “it is null and void and cannot be considered as a precedent”, remarked professor Antonio Baldassarre , president emeritus of the Constitutional Court at AdnKronos . Baldassarre also calls for a unanimous agreement between all parties to derogate from the rule that requires the opposition to be assigned the Copasir presidency. “ In the D'Alema case – the jurist told Adnkronos – there was an agreement of all the political forces that decided not to apply the law. It is not a practice that conforms to the norm but a practice that is contrary to the norm and therefore nothing. And it doesn't count as a precedent. The law must be applied, full stop ”.
Nicola Lupo: "Practice has made exceptions"
A dissonant voice among the experts was that of Nicola Lupo , professor of Parliamentary Law at Luiss and former institutional advisor to the former Minister of Economy and Finance, Giovanni Tria, appointed a few days ago by the League's Minister for Economic Development, Giancarlo Giorgetti, economic consultant on the vaccine dossier for national industrial production. According to prof. Lupo the nature of a government of "national unity" may allow for a derogation from the legislation. “There is a rather rigid constraint on the Copasir presidency to an opposition member – Lupo told Formiche.net -, but it refers to the moment of the election . And the practice has made exceptions ”.
The composition of the guarantee institution
The question of the Copasir presidency must be distinguished from that of the composition of the guarantee body which, according to the law, should be composed of five members of the opposition and five of the majority. "If the opposition does not have five representatives as it seems to me in this case, ad impossibilia nemo tenetur …", underlined prof. Baldassarre. “ Over-representing FdI with the assignment of the presidency and five Copasir members seems excessive to me – commented prof. Curreri at AndKrono s -. Instead, you can leave everything as it is and, all the more reason, attribute the presidency to Meloni's party, as long as political forces have the good sense to accept all the requests made by FdI ”. We need, concluded Professor Curreri, "a pact of the series to courtesy is answered with courtesy".
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/tensioni-tra-lega-e-fratelli-ditalia-sulla-presidenza-del-copasir/ on Wed, 10 Mar 2021 10:11:52 +0000.