A Ghanaian immigrant to Italy named his son Silvio Berlusconi, after the scandal and gaffe prone Italian prime minister whom he nevertheless regards as a "great political leader," a report said on Tuesday.
"I like the way Berlusconi talks, the way he moves. I like him as a person, even if I don't really follow politics," said Anthony Boahene, a 36-year-old metal worker who has been living in Italy since 2002, when Berlusconi was heading his second government.
His son, Silvio Berlusconi Boahene, was born in Accra in 2005 and was brought to the northern Italian city of Modena by his father a month ago, joining his two other siblings.
He might become an Italian citizen in three years.
Asked his opinion about the Berlusconi government's toughening of immigration norms, Anthony Boahane told the daily Il Resto del Carlino: "It's fine, laws need to be observed and that's it. It's the same in any country.
"This child will become president. Of Ghana or of Italy, it doesn't matter. I want him to study politics, to prepare himself," said Boahene.