[3] In the same year he defended the work of two priests of his diocese who came into conflict with their parishioners: Don Pasquale Pellegrino, from Torre Orsaia, unjustly accused of being the lover of local women,[4] and Don Gianni Citro Lentiscosa, already in shock for the management of a village party with his parishioners[5] who later wanted to remove him after his registration with the PD Italian party.
The bishop reminds Fr Gianni Citro that canon law limits the possibilities of political commitment of priests.
[6] On 15 January 2011, he was elected bishop of Aversa, succeeding the archbishop, personal title, Mario Milano.
[7] On 22 May 2012, he was elected, from the 64th General Assembly, vice president, for the south, of the Italian Episcopal Conference, remaining in office for five years.
On 3 January 2013, he was awarded the honorary citizenship of Monte San Giacomo, a small town in the province of Salerno[7] where he had previously been parish priest from 1983 to 1991.