61409 Leaving the "nightmare" alone cannot be allowed.
61410 So, nothing has changed in Italy after all.
61411 We wonder if that was what crossed everyone's mind, when Prime Minister Berlusconi announced the Cabinet resignation en masse at the end of last year?
61412 Corrupt politicians, the fragmented political map, and the revolving door of short-lived administrations.
61413 Words to describe Italian politics have not been favorable since the end of the war.
61414 Prime Minister Berlusconi, having made a meteoric rise to power from obscurity and established the right-wing administration last May, declared a break with the postwar system and promised to make "clean politics" a reality.
61415 This is why his administration was dubbed "the Second Republic."
61416 No one in Italy could have anticipated for this administration that captured so much of the people's hope to collapse after merely seven months from its inauguration, with the corruption charges against the Prime Minister himself acting as the catalyst.
61417 As for the Prime Minister, however, there have been dark rumors going around from the time when he entered the race for the general election.
61418 Such rumors included his connections to the Mafia crime syndicate and some corrupt politicians and his use of the mass media, i.e., an affiliate of Fininvest, the business group owned by Mr. Berlusconi, for his election campaign.
61419 However, these allegations faded before the enthusiastic citizens who are hoping for complete political reform and the new political star rose up and seized ultimate power.
61420 Since 1992 a large-scale investigation on corruption has been underway in Italy and over 2,000 political bigwigs including former prime ministers have been charged with the alleged bribery.
61421 The problem runs deep as the investigation on Mr. Berlusconi was a part of the cleanup operation that subsequently became the catalyst for prompting the fall of such postwar politics.
61422 As well, Mr. Berlusconi simultaneously took hold of both the media and political power, which further complicated the problem.
61423 Dubbed as the "Media King," Mr. Berlusconi attempted to further the control of the television networks even after taking office.