Rome mayor resigns over lavish restaurant expenses

Ignazio Marino, 60, stepped down late Thursday over a scandal centred on 20,000 euros (S$32,000) of restaurant bills settled with a city hall credit card over the course of his 28 months in office.

Subsequently, the Vatican official who co-sponsored the Philadelphia event was caught on a prank phone call disparaging Marino and questioning whether he could get Rome ready for the millions of pilgrims expected to come for Francis’ Jubilee Year of Mercy, which begins on December 8.

His resignation followed a heated meeting of the city government when it became clear he no longer had Renzi’s confidence and had lost his majority on the town council.

Rome’s mayor cried foul on Friday after being forced to resign over an expenses row and warned the Italian capital could succumb once more to organised crime.

A massive investigation over the awarding of public works contracts has implicated politicians and businessmen from both right and left, including Alemanno himself.

The fact that an extravagant funeral for purported mafia boss Vittorio Casamonica was allowed to take place in Rome caused particular embarrassment for the party.

Ironically, Marino was the architect of his own grief, publishing all his expense claims online last week in what was presented as a transparency push aimed at hushing critics over his frequent trips overseas.

On one occasion he claimed to have dined out with the ambassador of Vietnam, who promptly denied the encounter.

Another time, he said he had hosted a representative of the World Health Organization, but the restaurateur told La Repubblica newspaper that he had eaten alone with his wife.

Marino said in a letter addressed to Romans that his resignation was not an admission of guilt and he cited Italian law that says he could rescind it within 20 days.

Marino said he was paying the price for taking on entrenched corruption and feared Rome would now fall back into its old ways. However, considering his political isolation there appears virtually no prospect of him being able to carry on.