State Prosecutor Eran Shendar: I won't prevent Zelekha's ouster - Haaretz

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Thu., August 30, 2007 Elul 16, 5767

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		Accountant-General Yaron Zelekha. (Archives)

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Last update - 22:13 30/08/2007

State Prosecutor Eran Shendar: I won't prevent Zelekha's ouster

By Zvi Zrahiya, Tal Levy and Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondents

State Prosecutor Eran Shendar on Thursday announced that he would not intervene in the finance minister's decision not to extend Accountant-General Yaron Zelekha's contract for an additional term.

Zelekha uncovered the Bank Leumi affair involving Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and is considered a steadfast fighter against government corruption.

The accountant-general is the star witness in an ongoing police investigation against Olmert, in which the prime minister is suspected of interfering with the tender for the controlling interest in Bank Leumi in 2005, when he served as finance minister. Zelekha was behind the initial complaint to the comptroller on the matter.

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The finance minister has stressed that Zelekha has not been fired, but says rather that the accountant-general's tenure is simply coming to an end, and he places "great importance on rotating personnel during terms."

Shendar explained to Zelekha why he had decided not to prevent Finance Minister Roni Bar-On from dismissing him, saying that Zelekha had served a four year term, his term was nearing its end. He added that Attorney General Menachem Mazuz had several times over the course of Zelekha's term stepped in on his behalf to prevent his dismissal, after the accountant general filed complaints against the prime minister in relation to the Bank Leumi affair.

By law, Mazuz is the official with the authority to intervene in Bar-On's decision to dismiss Zelekha. However, Mazuz has recused himself from dealing with the Bank Leumi case due to a conflict of interest (Mazuz's sister was an advisor to the treasury during the relevant time period) and thus the authority to handle matters surrounding the case fell into Shendar's hands.

"We have become convinced that there is no need to interfere with the finance minister's decision to bring before the cabinet a candidate for the post of accountant general, who would bring about the end of your term," Shendar wrote to Zelekha. "I believe that upon your completion of a four-year term, the finance ministry is justified in considering the appointment of a new accountant general."

Earlier Thursday, Zelekha responded to Bar-On's move saying "the attempt to end my tenure has been done without authority, is illegal and anyhow does not bind me. I will not allow a group of suspected criminals to intimidate me from my mission of guarding public funds."

"This is not the first attempt at ending my term, nor is it the first finance minister who has tried to do so - and I am sure it won't be the last attempt either," he added.

Zelekha said recently that "a legal official said the Bank Leumi affair involving Olmert is 'the most severe case in the history of the state'." Prior to his election as prime minister, Olmert considered taking steps to bring about the end of Zelekha's tenure in the finance ministry.

He has also been quoted comparing government corruption to "terror" and saying Israel is the most corrupt country in the West. He also warned, during a Knesset meeting two weeks ago, that corruption is a threat to the very existence of Israel, and that "the economic burden from corruption is almost as severe as the security burden."

Zelekha is expected to fight his ousting, while legal organizations have already stated that they will petition the High Court of Justice on the matter.

MKs asses that if Zelekha does not petition the High Court, Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss will issue an order preventing his ousting.

On Thursday, Labor MK Shelly Yachimovitch said that motives behind the accountant general's dismissal were not pure, and threatened to petition the High Court of Justice herself.

Lindenstrauss said Thursday that anyone who reveals government corruption will be protected by law and that this protection is an important step in curtailing corruption in the public sector.

The comptroller's office said that Zelekha's has yet to file a complaint and that if he does it will be examined immediately. Since Zelekha uncovered the Bank Leumi affair that Lindenstrauss is investigation, he has the authority to issue an order keeping Zelekha at his post.

Knesset State Control Committee Chairman Zevulun Orlev said he will call upon the comptroller to prevent Zelekha's ousting and give him the protection that corruption fighters deserve by law. The committee will convene on Tuesday to discuss Zelekha's ousting.

Labor MK Ophir Pines demanded that a special Knesset meeting be convened during its recess as well, in order to discuss the Zelekha affair.

"Bar-On is being used as the prime minister's tool in order to get back at a man that did not follow the crowd, wasn't a yes-man and uncovered the prime minister's alleged transgressions," Pines said.

Arab MK Ahmed Tibi said that "ending Zelekha's tenure is a symptom of a sick system which has difficulty understanding the importance of criticism."

Likud MK Limor Livnat called on the Attorney General Menachem Mazuz to prevent Zelecha's firing, called him "the guardian of proper administration," and saying that "Zelekha turned his post into a position with some bite to it, and acted with bravery and integrity to protect the public."

Livnat called on Zelekha to fight with all the legal means at his disposal so that he can continue to serve the public.

The Movement for Quality Government turned to Mazuz and Bar-On and demanded that Zelekha not be removed.

"If one hair is to fall from Zelekha's head, this movement will not spare any of the legal means to protect him," the movement said in a released statement Thursday.

Zelekha was the economic advisor to Likud Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu, a known adversary of Olmert, while Netanyahu was prime minister. Moreover, Zelekha was appointed to his current position of accountant-general by Netanyahu while he was finance minister.

Legal experts asses that that the law is on Zelekha's side. The High Court of Justice has ruled in the past that terms of law enforcement positions, such as the accountant-general post, are not limited by a specific timeframe and can only be terminated if there is a proven and legitimate cause that would stand up in court.

Since Zelekha is a highly praised official and has won awards for his performance in the past, it may be difficult to convince the court that his ousting is legitimate.

On the other hand, the Civil Service Commissioner said that ending Zelekha's term, much like the term of any civil service executive, is not equivalent to firing him.

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1.	Finance Minister Roni Bar- is the real face of corruption	14:18	\|	SJ	30/08/07

2.	Go FIGURE!!!!!!!!	14:23	\|	Bozaglow	30/08/07

3.	Bar-on affair mark 2?	14:34	\|	Malcolm	30/08/07

4.	The entire non-political branch of government should rise	14:56	\|	Daniel van Dalen	30/08/07

5.	the whole system is rotten	15:05	\|	a Jew	30/08/07

6.	Jewish iceberg is melting!	15:45	\|	Omran	30/08/07

7.	Abuse of Power without Balance	16:02	\|	Lemmings Hotline	30/08/07

8.	THE "SWISS BANK GUARD" AFFAIRE ALL	16:11	\|	Robert	30/08/07

9.	Israel - How much more can you take?	16:20	\|	Smithy	30/08/07

10.	Bar On=Shechitut	16:24	\|	ussishkin	30/08/07

11.	why do +60 mks including shas support such a leader ?	16:29	\|	virginia orrall	30/08/07

12.	Nr 5 A JEW	16:40	\|	leon	30/08/07

13.	Am I missing something here?	16:49	\|	NP	30/08/07

14.	Who needs Olmert?	17:54	\|	Ralph	30/08/07

15.	Olmert has got to go	18:06	\|	Gabriel	30/08/07

16.	Zelekha must not be replaced by a stooge !	18:10	\|	redmike	30/08/07

17.	I LOVE HAARETZ!!!	18:16	\|	Reader	30/08/07

18.	Israel needs to crack down on corruption hard	18:47	\|	Gili	30/08/07

19.	the IMF knows	19:22	\|	honey bunch	30/08/07

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