Nigerian-born Toni Iwobi is the League's spokesperson on migration. He follows the party line which includes proposals to make it easier to deport migrants and withdraw benefits from those who break rules.
Born in Gusau in Northern Nigeria, Iwobi whose parents originally hail from ONITSHA came to Italy forty years ago as a student and later married an Italian woman before starting an IT company. He became a municipal councillor for the League in Spirano in the 1990s and has been the League party's spokesman on migration since 2014.
The League program includes proposals to make it easier to deport migrants, to use economic incentives for countries to take back their nationals from Italy and to refuse to take in some migrants rescued in the Mediterranean.
The party wants Italy to renegotiate the agreements with the EU to house migrants, to withdraw benefits for people who break the rules or commit a crime and to include a test for children of immigrants applying for citizenship.
The 62-year-old Iwobi of Spirano in Lombardy announced "with great emotion" on his Facebook page on Tuesday that he had been elected to the senate.
"I am very thrilled to tell you that I have been elected senator… A new adventure is about to begin," Iwobi wrote after Sunday's election as a candidate for the League, which has become the major force in the center-right coalition.Iwobi is the first black member of the upper house of parliament, but there have been two black members of the lower Chamber of Deputies: Jean-Leonard Touadi and Cecile Kyenge — both of the center-left PD party. Kyenge served as minister of integration in the previous government.
Comments
Post a Comment