SAN MARINO – A serious complaint arrived yesterday in the Foreign Affairs Commission from the councilor of Net Matteo Zeppawho reported that he had been contacted privately after expressing opinions on some residence practices examined in a secret session.
Zeppa explained that his assessments are mainly based on two elements: “the possible presence of a criminal record” and “the existence of debts towards the State”. Then the hardest passage: “What I don’t accept is being contacted privately on my cell phone for having dealt, in a regime of secrecy, with practices in which one of these two elements emerged or, in some cases, both.”
And again: “I don’t accept being grabbed by the scruff of the neck by anyone with a criminal record or debts to the State.” Zeppa also denounced the possible circulation of his own telephone number: “If my mobile number is passed on by the private secretary of a Secretary of State – and I exclude those present here – then I’m not interested”.
The councilor then asked that, from next time, the practices be discussed in a public session: “If someone has to respond to my observations, they will do so publicly and respond on the merits”.
The President of the Commission Michele Muratori he defined the incident as “a deplorable fact”, explaining that secrecy was chosen to protect the applicants’ personal data, income, assets and banking information. “What is discussed in a regime of secrecy should remain within the Commission,” he underlined, expressing closeness to Zeppa.
Solidarity also came from Antonella Mularoni (RF): “I strongly stigmatize what happened and I’m sorry, so I express my utmost solidarity with my colleague Zeppa. These things must not happen.”
The position of is also clear Nicola Renzi (RF), who invited further investigation into the matter: “If these are borderline threatening phone calls to convince a councilor to go back on his decisions, then we are faced with something completely different.” And he added: “Crimes must be prosecuted.”
The Commission, while confirming the importance of confidentiality for the protection of applicants, has therefore expressed a common position on the need to guarantee counselors freedom and independence in the exercise of their functions. It now remains to be clarified how the information circulated and, above all, who had access to Zeppa’s telephone number.
(Photo from RTV)
