We've been talking about it for months but in a few days the Government should cross the Rubicon and replace the State General Accountant (RGS) Biagio Mazzotta, destined to become President of Fincantieri. Barring last-minute surprises, RGS should be led by a woman for the first time, Daria Perrotta, head of the legislative office of the Mef.
The ongoing change of the State Accountant General, one of the highest institutional authorities, cannot fail to arouse tensions and raise a thousand questions. The Government and in particular the Minister of Economy, Giancarlo Giorgetti, with the backing of the prime minister Giorgia Meloni, accuses Mazzotta of not having reported in time the enormous costs for the State caused by the Super bonus and from patent box, as recalled yesterday in Corriere della Sera Francis Giavazzi. Mazzotta has always defended himself by claiming that in reality the RGS had warned the Government in advance about the costs of the two controversial measures but that political pressure got the better of the technical opinions. Perhaps the State Accountant General should have banged his fists on the table and defended his technical assessments with more determination or, in last resort, taken the initiative to resign, pinning all politics to his responsibilities. Otherwise the day of reckoning will arrive sooner or later and the State Accountant General risks becoming the scapegoat for the budget flaws. Beyond Mazzotta's responsibilities, however, there is something opaque and not very transparent in his replacement. And there is a doubt hovering over the appointment of the new Accountant which can only be disproved by the facts. Daria Perrotta is widely considered a very competent Treasury manager, but what is not clear is whether the Government has it in mind that the independence of RGS is an intangible value and that this is a special appointment. Will Perrotta, who will certainly owe gratitude to the Government for the upcoming promotion, be able to say no to Giorgetti and Meloni when their provision does not have the necessary financial coverage? The success of the changing of the guard in RGS will be played out precisely on this level: independence as well as technical competence.
