Billionaire media mogul and former premier transformed the nation\u2019s politics with polarising policies
\nMILAN
\n Silvio Berlusconi, the billionaire media mogul and former Italian prime minister who transformed the nation\u2019s politics with polarising policies and often alarmed his allies with his brazen remarks, died on Monday aged 86.
\nBerlusconi, Italy\u2019s longest-serving premier who counted Russian President Vladimir Putin as a friend and gained notoriety for his \u201cbunga bunga\u201d sex parties, had suffered from leukaemia and recently developed a lung infection.
\nHe died at Milan\u2019s San Raffaele hospital, where he had been since Friday, at around 0730 GMT. Four of his five children and his brother Paolo had been at his bedside, ANSA reported shortly before his death was announced.
\nBerlusconi\u2019s Forza Italia party is part of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni\u2019s right-wing coalition, and although he himself did not have a role in government, his death is likely to destabilise Italian politics in the coming months.
\nHis business empire also faces an uncertain future. He never publicly indicated who would take full charge of his MFE company following his death, even though his eldest daughter Marina is expected to play a prominent role.
\nHis passing was mourned by allies and rivals alike.
\n\u201cWe fought, won, lost many battles with him, and also for him, we will bring home the goals that we had jointly set ourselves. Farewell Silvio,\u201d Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said.
\nEnrico Letta, a former centre-left premier, wrote on Twitter: \u201cBerlusconi made the history of our country. His death marks one of those moments in which everyone, whether or not they backed his choices, feel affected.\u201d
\nShares in MFE\u2019s A- and B-shares jumped by as much as 10% after Berlusconi\u2019s death was reported, with traders on the Milan bourse saying it could pave the way for the company to be sold or merged with a rival.
\nAfter building a television empire in the 1980s, Berlusconi threw himself into politics in 1994 and almost immediately became prime minister. He held the post four times – 1994-5, 2001-5, 2005-6 and 2008-11 – despite multiple legal scandals.
\nHe stepped down as prime minister for the last time in 2011, with Italy close to a Greek-style debt crisis and his own reputation sullied by allegations that he had hosted \u201cbunga bunga\u201d sex parties with underage women, something he denied.
\nHe was acquitted on appeal on all charges related to the parties, but he was convicted for tax fraud in 2013, leading to a five-year ban on holding public office.
\nDespite his health woes and the relentless court battles, Berlusconi refused to relinquish control of Forza Italia and returned to frontline politics, winning a seat in the European Parliament in 2019 and in the Italian Senate last year.
\nWhile presenting himself as an elder statesman, he continued to fuel controversy, most notably with his refusal to blame his old friend Putin for the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, saying Moscow had only wanted to put \u201cdecent people\u201d in charge of Kyiv.
\nThere is no obvious successor to take the reins at Forza Italia, which won 8% of the vote in 2022, and allies and foes will want to poach his loyal electorate, who stuck with Berlusconi through thick and thin.
\nPerennially suntanned and vigorously promoted by his own media companies, Berlusconi brought his great skills as a salesman and communicator to the staid world of politics, offering a bright, optimistic outlook that voters lapped up.
\nHe also had a sense of humour that often landed him in trouble, most recently last December when he told players of his Monza soccer team the would bring them \u201ca bus of whores\u201d if they managed to beat a top Serie A rival.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Billionaire media mogul and former premier transformed the nation\u2019s politics with polarising policies MILAN Silvio Berlusconi, the billionaire media mogul and former Italian prime minister who transformed the nation\u2019s politics with polarising policies and often alarmed his allies with his brazen remarks, died on Monday aged 86. Berlusconi, Italy\u2019s longest-serving premier who counted Russian President […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":337218,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-337208","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n