Page 130 - Supplemento 2-2016 (ENG)

Prof. Paolo maddalena

The last and very important consequence of what has been said so far is
the right to build, the so-called ius aedificandi, which is not covered at all in pri-
vate property law since, apart from the fact that no legislation provides this
right, the fact remains that construction, that is the power to “modify” the ter-
ritory, can only be the decision of the “collective owner” of the territory itself,
that is the People, and certainly is not “content” of the individual, subjective
right of private ownership.

And here opens up the great debate about abandoned property and, con-
nected to this, the simple unconstitutionality of all regulations concerning pri-
vate ownership, which affirm the inalienable rights of the owner. An entire
area, therefore, that must be reviewed and reorganized in view, above all, of the
spontaneous action of citizens working to keep alive the “social function” of
property that has been abandoned by their original owners.

5. At this point the issue of “citizen participation” becomes central.
At the end of the Constitution, citizens, individually or jointly, have the
power of “initiative” in legislation, being able to propose laws of popular ini-
tiative (art. 71 Const.), or revocative referendum (art. 75 Const.). They also have
the power to participate with Institutions in “administrative functions”. This is
proclaimed by Article 3, paragraph 2, of the Constitution, ratifying that the
Republic guarantees “the participation of all workers in the political, economic
and social organization of the country”. Article 43 of the Constitution states
this in particular, claiming that companies involved in essential public services,
energy sources or situations of monopoly, must be in public hands or in the
hands of the “Community of workers or users”, to ensure competition of
other companies and a price level very close to the production cost in order to
favor companies acting in other productive sectors. Finally, we must remember
the last paragraph of Article 116 of the Constitution, according to which the
state, regional authorities, metropolitan cities, provinces and town councils
“Promote the autonomous initiative of citizens, individually or jointly, for car-
rying out activities of general interest, on the basis of the principle of solidari-
ty”. All this means that everyone, with no profit making purposes, and subject
to consultation with Institutions, can carry out all those activities that are clo-
sest to the citizens’ needs, in the pursuit of the common good and, in the case

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