ABSTRACT
The ‘Kickback City’ scandal (Tangentopoli) was late in breaking in Naples -and this despite the city’s reputation for corruption and political clientelism (Allum 1973). Indeed, it was more than a year after the arrest of Milan Socialist administrator Mario Chiesa, on 17 February 1992which set in motion the city prosecutor, Antonio Di Pietro’s ‘cleanhands’ criminal investigation (Inchiesta ‘mani pulite’) (della Porta 1993)—when Christian Democrat MP, Alfredo Vito, better known as ‘Mister Hundred-Thousand Votes’, decided to collaborate with investigating magistrates and confessed to buying votes and accepting bribes on 19 March 1993.1 However the immediate effects were devastating: permission was requested to lift the parliamentary immunity of eight Neapolitan MPs (Cirino Pomicino, Conte, Del Mese, Gava, Mastrantonio, Meo, Raffaele Russo, Alfredo Vito) accused of Mafiastyle conspiracy (Camorra e Politico, 1993). Almost contemporaneously, the former Socialist Mayor of Naples, Nello Polese and 16 city councillors were arrested together with a former provincial legislator, a former President of the Campania region, six regional legislators and five regional councillors for ‘corruption or Mafia connections’ (Commissione Antimafia 1993:4).
