Last update - 00:00 08/03/2007
PMO officials says succeeding in portraying Comptroller as a liar
Officials at the Prime Minister's Office said Wednesday that their aggressive response to the state comptroller's criticism of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has succeeded in portraying the comptroller as a liar who is obsessively trying to bring Olmert down.
The officials said their efforts to undermine the image of State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss were not just spin.
"It was an exceptional step," one of the officials said. "But there was no choice. It was clear that it's not possible to leave the arena to the comptroller without reacting."
In a tense meeting with the Knesset's State Control Committee on Tuesday, Lindenstrauss accused Olmert's office of either delaying the transfer of material necessary for the report on home front management during last summer's Lebanon war or not handing it over at all. Olmert's associates accused the comptroller of spreading lies.
Olmert and his associates consider the battle against the comptroller as significant for four other investigations of Olmert that the comptroller is conducting. These relate to political appointments Olmert is accused of making in the Israel Small and Medium Enterprises Authority, his purchase of a home on Cremieux Street in Jerusalem, the sale of the controlling interest in Bank Leumi and his role in the Industry and Trade Ministry's investment center.
When other institutions such as the Home Front Command joined in the struggle against Lindenstrauss, it became easier for Olmert to portray the comptroller's conduct as a matter of principle.
The comptroller, however, is not letting the flap with the prime minister stop his investigation of the management of the home front. Over the last few days, he asked local authorities in the North - including Kiryat Shmona, Safed and the Hatzor Haglilit local council - to comment on a report on their conduct during the war.
Kiryat Shmona municipal spokesman Doron Shenfar said the municipality had received a report on the conduct of the local authorities, including a detailed section on Kiryat Shmona. The Safed municipality said it had received a report in addition to questions regarding its preparations for the war.
The municipalities have been asked to respond within a month.
"It's good that there's a report, but it's important that they also suggest solutions, and for that, funds are needed," said a Kiryat Shmona municipal official. "To fix defects, you need money." The municipality has established a team to respond to the report and implement recommended solutions.
During the war, the local authorities were criticized for failing to adequately maintain bomb shelters and for their policies on the evacuation of residents. But residents of the North levied most of their criticism on the cabinet.
Meanwhile, Lindenstrauss has asked attorney David Libai to represent him in a High Court of Justice hearing on a petition filed by the office of the military defender and the head of the Home Front Command. The petition involves the comptroller's right to present the State Control Committee with the findings of the report on the home front.
Lindenstrauss and Libai are slated to meet early next week to discuss the matter. The High Court agreed Tuesday to postpone the hearing for "a short time" to allow Lindenstrauss to hire a lawyer after Attorney General Menachem Mazuz said he would not represent the comptroller.