Meloni to the mayor of Amatrice: the rebirth of the Apennines is a priority
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni met with the mayor of Amatrice to discuss the reconstruction and development of the central Apennines after the 2016 earthquake. Meloni assured that the economic and social rebirth of the region is a government priority and took note of the mayor's requests to find concrete solutions
3' min read
Key points
- The reassurance of Palazzo Chigi
- The demands of Amatrice
3' min read
A meeting with ten demands. Starting with the Special Economic Zone and certain times for reconstruction. The Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni , received the mayor of Amatrice, Giorgio Cortellesi, yesterday afternoon at Palazzo Chigi, in response to the open letter he had addressed to her on the eve of the eighth anniversary of the earthquake.
The reassurance of Palazzo Chigi
"The economic and social rebirth of the central Apennines is an absolute priority of the executive," was the reassurance delivered by the premier to the first citizen of the village that symbolised the 2016 earthquake that killed 299 people. Having just returned from her holiday, Meloni wanted to give that "sign of closeness" strongly urged by those who are still reckoning with the red zones, with thousands of displaced persons and with a worrying depopulation. "President Meloni has renewed the government's commitment to complete the reconstruction and restore security and development to the territories hit by the earthquake," a note from Palazzo Chigi said, defining the contribution of local institutions as "essential". And Mayor Cortellesi "sincerely thanks" the Prime Minister "for her closeness, commitment and message" sent on 24 August.
The demands of Amatrice
.For about forty minutes, the PM listened to all the questions posed by Mayor Cortellesi. 'Now I have to sort them out among the various ministries,' she is said to have commented at the end, after noting down for each dossier - those who were there tell us - the names of the individual ministers responsible. The most recurrent were the names of Giorgetti and Musumeci, to provide answers to the ten questions raised by the first citizen of Amatrice.
Zes and time certain
On the table of the holder of the Economy will first of all come the request for a Zone with preferential taxation, for those countries that still have red zones. Like Amatrice, Accumoli and Arquata del Tronto, destroyed by the tremor of 24 August 2016. The mayors of this corner of the Apennines, between Lazio, Marche and Umbria, are calling for tax relief to support businesses already active in the area and try to attract others interested in investing. The area of Upper Lazio has been excluded from the Single Zes of Southern Italy , which stops a handful of kilometres further south, in Abruzzo. That of a ZES or a Zls, a Special Logistics Zone, is an urgency that has already been clamoured for by the business network and on which the Extraordinary Commissioner for Reconstruction, Guido Castelli , had committed himself in an interview with 'IlSole24ore'.
The Reconstruction
Eight years after the earthquake, the number of cranes has increased, a sign that reconstruction is beginning to be more tangible, especially in the many hamlets of the villages. The historic centres, on the other hand, the beating heart of life in these medieval villages, continue to be a red zone, with demolitions still to be carried out in some cases and rubble that has just been removed. For this reason, the mayor of Amatrice reiterated to the premier the need for certain rules and timeframes for the completion of the work.
