Ticino government demands Claudio Zali resign immediately

The government of Ticino has called on Claudio Zali to resign immediately after a new criminal investigation was opened into an alleged sexual assault, SRF reported. Zali, a member of the Lega party, has rejected all allegations and so far refused to step down before the end of September, as previously announced.

The Ticino public prosecutor’s office confirmed the investigation to RSI on Tuesday. The alleged offences are said to date back several years, and Zali has already been questioned as a suspect.

The case follows an earlier investigation into alleged abuse of office. Zali had announced his resignation for the end of September, but the four other members of the government held an extraordinary meeting on Tuesday and called for him to leave immediately.

The government is due to discuss the reorganisation of Zali’s department at its regular weekly meeting on Wednesday morning. This suggests it may remove his remaining responsibilities and directorates if he does not resign. Zali has already given up responsibility for Justice and Police, leaving him with the Building Directorate.

If he also loses that portfolio, Zali would effectively be stripped of power while formally remaining a member of the government.

The government can remove all of Zali’s responsibilities, but it cannot dismiss him from office. Only parliament can do that, and only under strict conditions: he would have to be legally convicted of a misdemeanour or felony considered incompatible with the dignity of the office.

Speculation also intensified after a woman died in Lake Lugano several days ago. She was an acquaintance of Zali who had published a disputed telephone conversation with him, increasing pressure on the Lega politician. An autopsy found that she had drowned without the involvement of another person.