Raggi refuses urban planning chief's resignation

Rome, Feb 9 (IANS/AKI) Rome's grassroots mayor Virginia Raggi on Wednesday refused to accept the resignation of the city hall's planning chief Paolo Berdini after comments he allegedly made to an Italian daily including that she had an affair with her ex-cabinet chief.

"I meet town councillor Berdini asking for clarifications. He apologised and tendered his resignation, which I refused -- with reservations," Raggi said in a note.

Berdini has denied he gave an interview published Wednesday in La Stampa newspaper in which he was quoted as saying Raggi and her former cabinet chief Salvatore Romeo "were lovers".

Romeo is also cited by La Stampa as saying Raggi was "unprepared" for the job, had "surrounded herself by a gang" and that the city council was "a moral abyss".

Prosecutors are probing Raggi and Romeo for abuse of office over his hiring after he allegedly took out a 30,000 euro ($32,061) insurance policy in Raggi's name in January last year, six months before she appointed him and almost tripled his previous salary.

Raggi and Romeo deny wrongdoing and both claim Raggi did not know about the life insurance policy.

Raggi is also under investigation for abuse of office and false testimony over her appointment of Renato Marra, brother of the graft-tainted former city council personnel chief Raffaele Marra, as Rome tourism chief.

--IANS/AKI

sku/