Francesco Rocca (politician)

Francesco Rocca (born 1 September 1965) is an Italian manager and politician, President of Lazio since 2023.

This article is about the Italian politician. For the Italian football coach, see Francesco Rocca.
Francesco Rocca
President of Lazio
Assumed office
2 March 2023
Preceded byNicola Zingaretti
President of the IFRC
Assumed office
6 November 2017
Preceded byTadateru Konoe
President of the Italian Red Cross
In office
28 January 2013 – 29 December 2022
Preceded byMassimo Barra
Succeeded byRosario Valastro
Personal details
Born (1965-09-01) 1 September 1965
Rome, Italy
Political partyIndependent (close to FdI)
Alma materSapienza University of Rome
ProfessionLawyer, manager

Biography

First activities
Rocca in 2017

Rocca approached volunteering from the early years of his university studies in law: first alongside the Jesuit Refugee Service, then with Caritas, and finally with the Piccola casa della Divina Provvidenza.[1] During his university years, he enrolled in the Youth Front, the youth organization of the Italian Social Movement.[2]

In the mid-1990s he began his commitment to the world of healthcare as a manager: from 1996 to 2004, he was president and Commissioner of the Public Institute of assistance and charity (IPAB) "Santa Maria in Aquiro", while from 2001 to 2003 President of IPAB "Asilo della Patria".[2]

In 2003, the then president of Lazio Francesco Storace appointed Rocca general manager of the Sant'Andrea hospital and Extraordinary Commissioner of the Sant'Andrea.[2][3]

In parallel with his work as a lawyer, he continued his commitment to voluntary work through the Ethiopian NGO Hansenian's Ethiopian Welfare Organization of which, for a short time, he was also director general free of charge, and with the Italian Red Cross, adhering to the component of blood donors. Since the second half of 2007, he has been called upon to hold the position of head of the Emergency Operations Department of the Red Cross. In 2009, during the General Assembly in Kenya, he was elected as a member of the Board of Directors of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.[4] In 2017, during the general assembly in Antalya, he was elected as the new president of the Federation. He resigns from office in June 2023, following his election as president of Lazio with the centre-right coalition.[5]

Leading the Italian Red Cross

Rocca joined the Italian Red Cross in June 2007, becoming extraordinary commissioner in November 2008. In the meantime, a small interlude in the municipality of Rome, during the mayorship of Gianni Alemanno, as head of the Health and Social Activities Department of the Municipality of Rome.[2]

In January 2013, he assumed the position of national president of the Red Cross. The office of president was renewed for the first time in May 2016, and the second time in May 2020.[3]

President of Lazio

At the end of 2022, in the vicinity of regional elections in February 2023, the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni proposes Rocca's name as the official candidate of the centre-right coalition for the office of President of Lazio. By accepting the candidacy, Rocca leaves the leadership of the Italian Red Cross on 29 December 2022.

In the electoral round, characterized by a very low turnout, Rocca was elected governor with 54% of the votes.[6]

Controversies

At the age of 19, Rocca was convicted of drug dealing heroin, implicated in an investigation into a heavy drug ring run by a group of Nigerians in Casal Palocco, on whose behalf he had sold a pound and a half of drugs to a buyer: arrested in 1985, he was sentenced the following year to 38 months in prison.[2]

In 2023, Lazio planned on supporting the LGBTQ+ Pride Event in Rome but has since backed out of supporting the event saying that they did not want to be associated at promoting illegal conduct" specifically referring to issues regarding surrogacy, which is illegal in Italy.[7]

References
  1. "Dalla Croce Rossa alla politica. Chi è Francesco Rocca che corre per il Lazio". formiche.net. 19 December 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  2. "Chi è Francesco Rocca, candidato di centrodestra alla Regione Lazio". fanpage.it. 19 December 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  3. "Chi è Francesco Rocca, candidato del centrodestra alla presidenza della regione Lazio". romatoday.it. 20 December 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  4. "Chi è Francesco Rocca, candidato dal centrodestra alle Regionali del Lazio". Sky TG24. 19 December 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  5. "Red Cross federation chief stepping down". The Guardian Nigeria News. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  6. "Elezioni regionali 2023. Il centrodestra vince in Lazio e Lombardia. Rocca e Fontana sopra il 50%. Meloni: "Risultato che ci consolida"". La Repubblica. 13 February 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  7. Giuffrida, Angela (2023-06-06). "Rightwing governor of Lazio region withdraws backing for pride parade". The Guardian. Retrieved 2023-06-06.
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