Last update - 00:00 18/02/2007
Tax Authority head Jackie Matza resigns amid corruption scandal
By Moti Bassok, Haaretz Correspondent
Israel Tax Authority Director Jackie Matza announced his immediate resignation Sunday amid corruption allegations.
In the letter to Finance Minister Abraham Hirchson, Matza said he was confident he would be able to clear his name, and explained that he decided to step down in order to enable the appointment of a new director for the Tax Authority on a permanent basis.
Hirchson accepted Matza's resignation, and announced that he will soon establish a committee to nominate a replacement.
Joseph Bachar is currently serving as Israel Tax Authority director on an interim basis, a position to which he was appointed following Matza's arrest in connection with a tax corruption scandal.
Matza was appointed as director at the beginning of 2006 , and was arrested in December. After several days in remand, Matza was released for house arrest. The civil service commissioner compelled Matza to take a leave of absence for the extent of the house arrest and forbade him from entering the Tax Authority offices.
Matza maintains that he is innocent, and several colleagues within the Tax Authority have corroborated his version of events. He said in the letter that he was resigning for the good of the Tax Authority, so that a permanent replacement could be appointed.
Reports indicate that several top law firms and accountants' offices have approached Matza with job offers, and he is expected to join their ranks soon.
Matza ended his letter with a statement of full confidence in his ability to clear his own name and "remove the cloud currently darkening my sky."
He thanked the finance minister and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for the confidence they showed in him when they appointed him for the position of director.