Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi yesterday said he had no intention of stepping down and dismissed protests by women across Italy over his involvement in a sex scandal.
This billionaire, media entrepreneur, who was severely weakened by last year's split within the ruling PDL party, told his "Kanal 5" that the protests were the work of his political opponents.
"Certain sections of the left-wing forces are mobilizing people against me and using every excuse to beat up the opponent whom they fail to win in the elections," he said.
A survey conducted by the Demos Institute and published in the left-wing daily "Republika" shows a sharp drop in Berlusconi's popularity by 4,6 percentage points, so that it now stands at 30,4%.
In contrast, the popularity of Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti, who is seen as a possible leader of the center-right government should Berlusconi step down, rose by 7,8 percentage points to 50,4%.
Berlusconi said he always treated women "with great care and respect."
"I have always tried to treat every woman in such a way that she feels special," he added.
The prime minister, who has worked hard in recent weeks to secure support for his precarious majority in parliament by trying to win over lawmakers from smaller parties, said the government would not resign over the affair.
"There is a lot of confusion, but I have very clear ideas. It is in the country's interest to have a stable government that resolutely implements its program," he said.
Berlusconi has never made a secret of his love for the company of young women, but he has denied doing anything illegal, and his lawyers have obtained witness statements that say the events at the prime minister's villa were nothing more than jovial parties.
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