01/04/2015 - With the delegates Vito Alò and Antonio Colombo of the CoCeR Marina we take stock of the situation on the Defense "white paper" and on the operation Safe Sea which is about to be initiated by the government; we listen to them through the point of view of the Navy personnel.

Antonio Colombo is a captain of the Navy frigate - Commander Colombo, due to the role he holds within the CoCeR, he cannot deal with operational issues, but we are interested in knowing his opinion on the "white paper" wanted by Minister Pinotti and his point of view on the results achieved.

The idea of ​​the "white paper" is not new, but it is still appreciable. But I am very worried by the lack of involvement with the main defense actors, the military.
The minister wanted to hear and acknowledge the opinions of everyone, including non-profit civil associations, but he did not listen to the men nor much more seriously from a political point of view, the representations constituted by the Italian Law precisely for give voice to the military.

Do you mean that you have not been heard?

Exact. No invitation, no request for opinion, although officially the CoCeR (Central Representative Councils, ed) of the three Armed Forces had asked him last January and I sincerely can not explain why.

Do you have any particular opinion to expose, useful for the purposes of the "white paper"?

Certainly. But first of all I have to say this story convinces me more and more that it is necessary for the military personnel to extend the trade union rights. In a case like this the government would have felt obliged to respect the institutional forms.

Vito Alò is a 2 ° chief (sergeant major) of the Navy - Given its position and its minor seniority of service, what would be the topics that interest the staff?

First of all I would like to understand if politics considers the central staff to the Defense project and how it intends to enhance it. This concept has been missing for many years. Now every activity is carried out thanks to the staff who are asked for all kinds of skills: from the operational to the organizational, even to carry out the cleaning, but without a real project of enhancement. This is bringing a generalized demotivation among the staff of all grades.

The country is not ready to improve military pay, do not you think?

But I am not asking for salary increases, but the use of economic means to increase recruitment in an adequate number, to give certainty of the payment of allowances for certain activities (flat-rate payments, overtime etc.), to provide for a greater professionalism with targeted updates necessary for the growing needs to support operational activities, such as digitalization of logistics and internal organization.

The operation Safe Sea it will be the umpteenth test for your armed force.

I do not think the Navy needs yet another test bed. The staff I represent has shown in every situation, especially in the last twenty years the great professionalism and ability to adapt to different needs of employment.
Of the Mare Sicuro operation, as a delegate, I can only talk about the economic effects on staff and the possibility that at the end of our colleagues are put in a position to recover the lost energy.
The Government should guarantee the coverage of ancillary salaries to the personnel, avoiding the difficulties and slowness occurred for the Mare Nostrum operation.

The other aspect - concludes the delegate Colombo - it is instead connected to the decrease in recruitment.

Why do you talk about recruitment?

The problem is who replaces the personnel who, after the activities, need rest periods and who will turn the Armed Forces in the future for these activities.
We are getting old. Too many fifty-year-olds, including myself, a few in their thirties, very few in their twenties.

Who will do the most tiring work in the next few years? - Vito Alò intervenes - Who can do daily jobs that require particular physical strength and concentration? It is true that lifestyle is much better than twenty years ago, but young people have excellent physical strength, motivation and adaptability. The services of barracks now make them only forty ... many fifty years old are still on board. Resuming recruitment is a priority; it is necessary to give young force to the Navy. The government must facilitate exits to increase the inputs while maintaining the 150.000 2024 military target set by 244's 2012 Law.

Does the white paper deal with this topic?

I do not think so, the white paper outlines a defense model different from the current one. The problem could be to harmonize the measures between them.

Meanwhile, however, a solution to these problems can be given by the government with the modification and balance of recruitment and leave with the instrument of reorganization of the military model that can be corrected by the end of the year. I speak - says Colombo - the amendment to the 7 Legislative Decree and 8 of the 2014 which implemented the 244 / 12 Law.

On the other hand, we are concerned about the professional model which, in the current state, deals with the white paper - says Alò - between the lines we read that the staff could be recruited always on a fixed term and I am not sure that our country is able to bear it.

What do you ask the government for?

That involves and listens to CoCer illustrating the white paper and the prospects it triggers. Keep in mind that at the center of the new model there must be men and women in uniform and the defense service that the FFAA must provide to the country.

Andrea Cucco