VATICAN CITY
Irish Independent
TOM KINGTON IN ROME – 03 SEPTEMBER 2013
THE VATICAN’S de facto prime minister has hit out at his enemies a day after being ordered out by the Pope, claiming that he was surrounded by “crows and vipers” who undermined him.
Defending his record despite a series of scandals, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone (78) also appeared to suggest that any blame for errors should be shared by Pope Benedict XVI, who appointed him as secretary of state, effectively his number two, in 2006.
The backlash followed the surprise announcement that Pope Francis had named Archbishop Pietro Parolin (58), currently nuncio in Venezuela, as Cardinal Bertone’s replacement, with a handover due next month.
Cardinal Bertone’s tenure culminated with the leaking by Benedict’s butler of papal correspondence last year. Among the documents were claims that Cardinal Bertone ran a Vatican riven by petty rivalries, corruption and mismanagement.
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