Enough senators for life: abolish the second paragraph of article 59 of the Constitution, the one which establishes the possibility for the President of the Republic to appoint senators for life five citizens who have brought prestige to the country for outstanding merits in the social, scientific and artistic fields or literary. This is what is foreseen in the constitutional law proposal presented by the Northern League deputy and president of the Productive Activities commission of Montecitorio, Manuela Dal Lago, and also signed by other colleagues in the group.
While not naming names, the reasons that prompted the presentation of the proposal are clearly explained by the recent appointment of Monti and his consequent executive, an initiative not appreciated by the Carroccio. In fact, Dal Lago recalls that "until the end of the 50s the nominees were chosen from among personalities extraneous to political life, while from that moment on, personalities closely linked to the political world began to be nominated with increasing frequency, often with positions relevant within the parties”.
But "the evolution of the electoral system - continues the Northern League parliamentarian - has meant that life senators have in many cases assumed a very strong political role, to the point of determining, thanks to their vote, even the very birth of governments, in total contrast with the origin of the institute. In this way, even the constitutional position of neutrality of the President of the Republic, already under tension for other reasons, is undermined".
And here we come to the obvious reference to Monti: "The very appointment as senator for life of a personality who, a very short time after this investiture, was charged with forming the Government raises many perplexities, precisely in relation to the constitutional role of the President of the Republic".
In consideration of the fact that "it is now difficult to find a strong justification in support of an institution that has no significant counterparts in other western democratic states", Dal Lago's constitutional law proposal proposes the suppression of the constitutional provision relating to the presidential nomination life senators.
