Silvio Berlusconi spoke at the conclusion of the Forza Italia convention in Milan. He did so via a 20-minute video intervention. Berlusconi is still hospitalized at San Raffaele: he entered the hospital on April 5 for pneumonia, a complication of a chronic leukemia from which he has suffered for some time.
“Forza Italia is for us like a secular religion the religion of freedom that Benedetto Croce talked about, a religion of the heart, of the mind, a commitment to ourselves, our children, the Italians.I recommend that we go forward like this, with conviction, enthusiasm, passion. No one will be able to defeat us, you will see that Italians will consider us their secular saints, the saints of their freedom and well-being.I will be with you with the same enthusiasm and commitment as in ’94, the future is of our ideas, the future must guarantee us true and complete freedom.”, Berlusconi says
“Only a great man, a great statesman, a great political leader after a month of hospitalization has the strength to address his people, to Italy with a message that will vindicate our identity,” says Forza Italia leader Antonio Tajani. “The effort he has made, after a month of hospitalization, to be with us shows his human greatness and the fact that he is a statesman, a great leader, he is not only our leader but much, much more. His message will be very emotional from all points of view.”
The appointment on Friday and Saturday according to Tajani “affirms the presence of Forza Italia and its important role within the government, the political centrality of the party. We are at the center, not just the center-right.” He adds, “Forza Italia is a living and leading force that wants to be a reference also for the many Pd voters, ex-Democrats, ex-socialists and moderates who are a bit worried about the leftward turn of the Democratic Party.”
