The TAR, accepting the appeal of the Ministry of the Interior through the Prefecture, suspended as a precautionary measure from yesterday, Wednesday 22 July, the decrees appointing the deputy mayor and the municipal council of Ottana adopted by Mayor Franco Saba , who at the time the appointments were signed was under house arrest and prohibited from communicating with third parties.
The measure was signed on Wednesday by Giulia Ferrari, president of the First Section of the Regional Administrative Court of Sardinia. At the heart of the matter are the decrees with which Mayor Franco Saba appointed the deputy mayor and councilors immediately after the proclamation.
The documents were digitally signed and sent to the Municipality via certified email at 8:59 PM on the same day as the proclamation, which took place at 8 PM. At that time, however, the mayor was under a precautionary measure issued by the preliminary investigations judge of the Nuoro Court, charged with attempted extortion by the Nuoro Public Prosecutor's Office.
A measure that later resulted in prison arrest for Saba, who repeatedly violated the precautionary measures, and subsequently in a further worsening of the situation.
The appeal presented by the Ministry challenges not only the appointments of the municipal council and the deputy mayor, but also the acts of the inaugural municipal council , during which the election of the mayor and councilors was validated and the appointments of the municipal executive were acknowledged.
For the Regional Administrative Court, at this stage, the public interest prevails that the Municipality be administered by bodies whose appointments are fully legitimate. Hence the decision to suspend the appointments, thus preventing the council, led by Deputy Mayor Peppino Mura, from operating until at least September 2nd, when the council chamber is scheduled to meet.
On that date, the Regional Administrative Court (TAR) will examine the merits of the precautionary request and further evaluate the legal issues raised by the appeal. A successful appeal will open the door to a special administration. Saba and the Municipality of Ottana did not appear in court. Councilor Marcello Corda, represented by lawyers Antonello Rossi and Claudio Contu, did so as an opponent.
