Mario Draghi: He made fun of himself with a “caustic” joke about bankers at a dinner of the Union of Foreign Correspondents

The Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi took part tonight in a dinner in his honor hosted by the country’s Foreign Correspondents’ Association. The technocrat prime minister was clearly more “relaxed” than is usually the case in his public appearances and joked with reporters.

He even wanted to say a “caustic» joke, with which he mocked himself. “Super Mario,” at the beginning of his short speech, stated: “A patient is waiting to undergo a heart transplant. The doctors tell him: “We have two hearts. One belonged to a 25-year-old, who was in excellent health, while the second belonged to an 86-year-old central banker. Which one do you want?” “The second, the banker’s”, answers the patient. And when the doctors ask him, surprised, the reason for his choice, he answers: “But of course, because that heart… was never used!”».

The humor about “hard work” in Italy

In the same spirit, addressing the foreign correspondents working in the country, the Prime Minister of Italy and former President of the European Central Bank, added: “You are in love with Italy, therefore very demanding. Keep it up, sipping cappuccinos in the sun and aperitivos in the Italian squares. Being a correspondent in Italy – I get it – is a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it!”.

In a brief reference to economic and political current affairs, Mario Draghi expressed his satisfaction with the increase in energy storage in his country, underlining that the energy dependence on Russia decreased within a year from 45% to 25% of all imports”.

“We defend the free press, because in this way, we defend our democracy. It is a fundamental right, which has helped us in the most difficult moments of our history”, Mario Draghi finally said, addressing the foreign journalists working in Italy.