Italy: Balusconi Begins Community Service In Milan

by Benson Agoha

Former Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi has arrived at a care home today to begin a community service for Tax Fraud.

The Ex-PM smiled as he was welcomed to the Catholic care home, near Milan on Friday.

Balusconi, 77, was beginning his service over a four years in prison sentence for tax fraud last year which he will not serve because of age, according to the provision of the Italian law.

* Former Italian PM, Silvio Balusconi shake hands with official as he posed for photographers on arrival.

The sentence was commuted, in an act of leniency, to four hours work a week with dementia patients.

According to media reports the care home will be treating Balusconi will be treated like any other assistant regardless of his status.  But on arrival, it was already evident that this was no ordinary assistant.

Camera Crews and journalists clustered outside the Care Home as the former PM arrived, posed for a photograph while shaking hands with an official.

Not afraid of controversy, Balusconi has been involved in many allegations and court cases, including his penchant for dalliances with younger women, one of which resulted in a divorce.

He was heckled by a trade unionist as he arrived but he did not respond.

His freedom is restricted as he has had to surrender his passport and cannot travel out of the country. His travel within Italy is severely restricted and he will observe a nightly curfew at his home, near Milan.

Massimo Restelli, head of care services at the Care Home said the billionaire will be gradually introduced to his patients, so that he and the elderly patients could get used to each other.

"It will be small steps so as not to make any mistakes, and then he could do all sorts of things. He could help with meals, which are tricky because sometimes you have to 'remind' the patient that they are eating," he said.

* Twitter: @woolwichonline.

* Photo Credit: AFP/BBC.