The controversy over the state flights that ministers Daniela Santanchè and Francesco Lollobrigida allegedly improperly carried out to commemorate the fallen in the battle of El Alamein appears decidedly anachronistic. Beyond the fact that the two ministers explained exhaustively that what was reported by Fatto Quotidiano was a partial version, since both were already in Egypt for institutional commitments, it seems that the clock of some politicians has stopped at 2007.

The 5 Star Movement is changing its skin

17 years have passed since the publication of the book La Casta by Sergio Rizzo and Gian Antonio Stella, which inaugurated an anti-politics campaign that culminated in the rise of the 5 Star Movement. This controversy appears emblematic precisely because it explodes in the days in which the M5S renews itself, abandoning the ‘movementist’ vision of Beppe Grillo to definitively embrace the progressive one of Giuseppe Conte.

Today, Italians demonstrate their aversion to politics more through non-voting than through support for protest movements: the M5S, in fact, has gone from 32% in 2018 to around 10-12% in the latest surveys. The M5S, born as a movement to fight and govern against the costs of politics, has shown its limits since its entry into the institutions. Roberto Fico, for example, the day after being elected President of the Chamber, arrived at Montecitorio by public transport: a symbolic gesture that was never repeated, since it was explained to him that, for security reasons, the third position in the State had to use the blue car.

Among the most iconic battles of the five stars was the reduction in the number of parliamentarians, which went from 931 to 600. However, this reform had the only effect of decreasing the elective possibilities of M5S parliamentarians, also considering the limit of two mandates imposed by the movement. It could be said that this move, although thought of as a victory, turned out to be a political own goal for many historical personalities of the Movement.

From an economic point of view, the policies carried out by the M5S – such as the citizen’s income, the introduction of wheelchairs and, above all, the Superbonus – have proven to be much more expensive than the savings resulting from cutting the costs of politics. The provinces, formally abolished, continue to exist but have been weakened and deprived of their electivity, an aspect that seems destined to change soon. Even public funding for parties, eliminated before the birth of the M5S, has been replaced by a system of donations which, however, has already shown fragility, as demonstrated by various judicial investigations.

The M5s canceled Grillo and stopped him at the limit of two terms

In short, in 15 years of life, of which more than half were spent in government or in permanent electoral campaigns, the M5S has not produced radical changes or lasting results for the country. Perhaps this is also why, after having governed with transversal alliances in the last legislature, the Movement is now aiming for a definitive turn towards the left. Will this be his salvation? It’s difficult to say, but it certainly represents the failure of the original Grillina rhetoric.