Last week, Italian lawmaker Aboubakar Soumahoro was at the center of a controversy in connection with an investigation carried out by prosecutors in the central Italian city of Latina. The investigation looked into an alleged failure to pay workers and very poor conditions of assistance for them by the Karibu cooperative and Aid Consortium, companies Soumahoro's wife and mother-in law have had leading roles in.

Soumahoro's mother-in-law, Maria Therese Mukamitsindo, and his wife Liliane Murekatete think the "scandal exploded" following his election and "right after [Soumahoro] went to Catania to defend migrant landings," referring to Soumahoro taking a stand to support migrants stranded on NGO-run ships off Sicily earlier this month.

"The target is Aboubakar, they want to sink him", they added.

Soumahoro, a newly elected Member of Parliament for the Green Left Alliance party, has been scrutinized since last Thursday (November 17) because of the investigation. At the moment, no charges have been brought forward.

However, the former activist and unionist turned politician said in statements to the media he had nothing to do with the case. He also posted on November 20 a video of himself crying on Facebook saying he has been struggling for people's rights all his life and against any form of exploitation.

At the age of 42, Soumahoro won a seat in the lower house of parliament for the Green Left Alliance party, becoming the only Black member of the incumbent parliament and one of only a handful ever to have been elected in Italy’s 160-year history.

'Everything went to refugees,' mother says

According to Aboubakar Soumahoro's mother-in-law, he spent "everything" on refugees. "Everything has been accounted for and I can prove it," she said. Soumahoro's wife also stated that her husband "was never interested in the cooperative. We never talk about it in the family."

Speaking about the alleged missed payments to workers, she said: "We have no money to give because the State does not pay us in time."

On the alleged abuse that took place in a hosting center, the two women reportedly said that the boys who lived there "never complained." Racism-related allegations "referred to one of the places where they were taken afterwards," they claimed.

Speaking about a presumed irregular contract, both remembered an Egyptian mediator: "He said that he had regular documents. We only found out later that he didn't have documents nor, we presume, a residence permit. That case was handled too lightly", they acknowledged.

'Mudsliding will not stop us'

In statements published by some Italian newspapers, Soumahoro said he is "very concerned".

"I don't underestimate such attacks by the media. But to those who want to bury me politically I say that they have to come to terms with the fact that mudslinging will not stop us."

He went on to say that "since I did not experience anything of this case, I would end up providing superficial information with an ongoing investigation" being carried out by prosecutors.

He explained that he did not want to elude questions on the case and that his wife "does not own any cooperative, is not a member of any board and was never part of the Aid Consortium. It is true that she was an employee of Karibu but she is currently unemployed."

"She will provide all clarifications" when investigators question her, he added.

The parliamentarian also posted on Facebook a video of himself crying. "Can you tell what I've done?", said the 42-year-old Ivorian native. "I've been struggling for people's rights all my life. Twenty years on the street to try to give people dignity. My life has been characterized by the fight against all forms of exploitation. You want me dead. I have always fought".