The cheerful taxis of Sicily

Maybe it's that deep, institutional color. Satisfying, as if it were adding the missing piece to the standard outfit. No one wants to think that climbing into a blue car still has the sour aftertaste of "I'm sorry, but I'm me and you're nothing" . And what if the ultimate goal, stripped of all reasoning, was reduced to the simple convenience of slipping through traffic without paying toll? A safe conduct through the bus lanes , not like any uncivilized motorist zigzagging through the traffic jam. Whatever happens, the intoxication of excessive use of blue cars, and their escorts, can have side effects .

Gaetano Galvagno , the Melonian president of the Sicilian Regional Assembly, who is under investigation in Palermo, knows something about this. Public prosecutors and finance police are investigating him for alleged corruption involving gifts, consultancy, and positions . Mother Region generously opens the purse strings for fairs, festivals, and events. A small business circle, set up by the president of the Sicilian parliament, allegedly took advantage of this. Culture, social issues, and charity are a shield against the unwary. Who would step in to criticize the organization of Christmas concerts for children from disadvantaged suburbs in theaters, or to downplay the value of conferences against violence against women. It matters little if the former are attended by a small and distracted schoolchildren, so much so that extras have to be recruited from among the children of the wealthy bourgeoisie wearing "three-hundred-euro sweatshirts" (as the suspects put it) to fill the empty seats. And the conferences? Too often, they become catwalks of blah blah blah for people who talk to themselves. Good intentions, impalpable effects.

The finance police were seeking confirmation of the corruption pact alleged by the Palermo prosecutor's office, which, along the way, had to open a case alleging embezzlement for the use of the official car . Galvagno's driver was a problem solver for household chores. The map of the trips deemed illegal—about sixty in a year—has a strong, so to speak, food and wine theme. The driver, with his flashing lights on to hurry (or to keep the food fresh?), went around picking up salted ricotta and cherry tomatoes, sushi and kebabs, Aperol and prosecco . Blessed was the official car on a hot May day in Palermo, when the bouquets of flowers ordered by the president were indeed placed in the trunk by his sister, but with the air conditioning turned up full blast, otherwise they would "dry out." The company car was a luxury taxi for relatives (besides his sister, also uncles, cousins, and his mother) and friends of the president, party colleagues, men and women who traveled day and night between homes, hotels, and airports. Incontinence comes from habit. The superfluous becomes necessary.

Among the regular users was the president's spokeswoman, Sabrina De Capitani , a communications expert from Brianza whom Galvagno, after meeting at a dinner, wanted by his side in Sicily. Some call her a "caliphate" and others a "queen," she was the key figure in managing Galvagno's events and image . She couldn't resist the temptation and ended up using the president's company car, an Audi A6, to go to the pharmacy, the gym, or to driving school to get her license . The woman would call and the driver would drive away. She ended up under investigation; her role would have bordered on criminal liability.

"Irrelevant," thunders Galvagno, who, to justify the at least cheerful use of the official car, cites the interpretation of the regulations and reiterates the urgent need to draft a new one "clearly and unequivocally for the future." Behind every word he utters is the imprint of his lawyers. A legitimate defense strategy has begun to assert, from the outset, that the rules are looser than the cage that limits the use of the official car to the president's service and representation needs . In short, wrapping supermarket groceries with sheets of the Sicilian Regional Assembly's regulations could have an impact on a potential trial. In the meantime, it's still ricotta and cherry tomatoes we're talking about.

Some of his wealthy staff had very clear ideas. "The president can do whatever he wants," his chauffeur would say, invoking—listen!—the "ad personam" regulations. Who knows if, as in the case of insurance, there's an extension that would exonerate a driver caught using his official car for small family needs. The more romantic will see it as a reverberation of the Marxist manifesto, a sign of "the proletariat's revolt," the "overthrow of bourgeois rule." Who knows if the fascination will work on the magistrates who will have to assess the weight of the matter.

The family dog sometimes traveled in the blue car . Memory easily brings to mind Gianfranco Micciché 's cat. The story of the blue car has already cost the former president of the Sicilian Regional Assembly, Galvagno's predecessor, a dearly beloved figure.

Summary: The police were tracking a godfather of the old mafia, property developer Francesco Bonura. Tailing him, they noted a meeting to organize a banquet with restaurateur Mario Di Ferro, whose resume boasts having cooked for two popes, Ratzinger and Francis, and his friendship with Miccichè. The sordid story of the cocaine sold to the politician came to light, as well as the official car assigned—it goes without saying, by regulation—to the former president, who often parked in front of Di Ferro's restaurant. Even "his" official Audi Q3 was used to transport Miccichè's family, collaborators, and friends. Other times, it was used as a means of transportation for "fantastic broad beans," "two trays of baked pasta, sfincionello and gateaux, coffee pods," and all the food needed for Miccichè's birthday party, purchased by his friend Di Ferro. Food always plays a part . The staff commuted from Palermo to Cefalù, where the honorable member, once a general in triumphant election campaigns that ended in a Bulgarian victory in Sicily, lives. They were busy following the work of the workers who "need to check this blocked gutter" or buy "the refrigerator." One time, the driver was tasked with picking up "twelve bamboo plants and four succulents." The driver himself thought it was excessive, and he blurted out, "I don't have a Fiorino." It might be an idea for the future to equip the fleet with a service van.

Nothing compared to the request the driver attempted to resist: "The cat doesn't get in the blue car." All true by Miccichè's own admission, but there was a noble reason: the family cat was terribly ill, and the exception to the rule was needed to take him to the vet and save his life. Who wouldn't do that in an emergency?

Digging further, they found the mission papers inflated by the driver , who was convicted, and signed by Miccichè, who is still on trial. He's already paid the price, though. A few weeks ago, he reached an agreement with the regional government, paying €28,000 for the damage to his reputation . In exchange, the Sicilian Regional Assembly will not join the case as a civil party. The green light for mediation was given by the Presidential Council, with the favorable vote of current president Galvagno. No irony intended, just a cold, newsworthy note.

A question, as always, of regulation, which can sometimes lead to delusions of omnipotence falling prey to impunity . This is what happened to Silvana Saguto, the former Palermo Court magistrate responsible for preventive measures. She is currently in prison serving a corruption sentence . A very dark chapter for the judiciary, shattering the state's credibility in the management of assets seized from mafiosi and entrepreneurs accused of doing business with Cosa Nostra. Saguto and a group of judicial administrators and consultants feasted on businesses, often going bankrupt . Silvana Saguto, who actually wrote some serious anti-mafia pages, was powerful and heavily guarded. Except that she had transformed "the public protection service into a private privilege." In addition to the dozens of charges for mismanagement of assets, abuse of office was also added. The law is clear: no one other than the magistrate may be transported in the armored vehicle, except, in very extraordinary cases, close relatives and cohabitants. The head of the escort must assess the need "to balance two conflicting interests: ensuring the safety of the person being escorted and seeking not to restrict individual freedom."

Instead, the convicted and disbarred former magistrate had mistaken the escort for a taxi service for herself, her family, and friends. They were picked up at home and driven around the city. Not to mention all the times Saguto asked the officers to take care of errands that had nothing to do with the uniform they wore : from buying sea urchins for roast beef pasta, to picking up prescriptions from the doctor, to delivering fruit to her friend, the former prefect of Palermo, Francesca Cannizzo. The escort even picked up her tunic from the dry cleaners and the silver basket to fill with flowers; from dog food to shoes from the cobbler.

"You can come, but you have to stop by the perfumery and get me the makeup remover pads, the large ones," Saguto ordered his escort in one of the many embarrassing intercepted conversations. The officer found himself faced with an unexpected dilemma, one he'd never encountered in training courses: "He's checking better, but most likely the large ones aren't there, the small ones are."

On many occasions, as the bodyguards themselves admitted, it was easier to hold one's nose and take care of business for the magistrate rather than activate the security service to accompany her . This and more helped to dispel the accusation of abuse of office, despite the excessive use of bodyguards, which, let's be honest, have often become a mere theatrical element. There are mandatory bodyguards and those for which it's difficult to justify. All it takes is to have signed up once, even decades later, to join the militant anti-mafia movement, and the bodyguard is forever. The safety risks wouldn't require certain levels of protection, but the standard outfit would suffer.

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