They forgot about expertise
Whoever defends himself after the fact, after a failure, and argues that he had not been ready for his role, is admitting that he accepted the assignment from the voters under false pretenses.
By Amir OrenThe state comptroller's report on the shortcomings of the handling of the home front, accumulated over recent years and popped like a blister during the war last summer, is only an example that represents a phenomenon: the pathetic level of expertise that in Israel is considered sufficient for running the country.
No form of verbal acrobatics, no delay in offering testimony and no defense mounted as an attack against the comptroller by the individual being criticized will transform the failure of the government and its organs in their handling of the home front in the North last July and August into an overwhelming success. And what took place in the summer is relatively minor compared with what could take place in an attack by a well-equipped military's missiles, armed with either conventional or other forms of warheads.
The politicians care about how they are perceived - will responsibility be directed at Ehud Olmert or Amir Peretz, the minister of public security or the interior minister, the chief of staff or the home front chief, or perhaps those that preceded them? But for the victims of these failures - which have not been corrected and which will not be corrected if politics interferes in the rapid implementation of the lessons - it is much more crucial that expert individuals be appointed in both the elected and the operational positions.
The issue that the comptroller's report presents, following a description of the situation at the grassroots level, will be precisely what the government in cabinet meetings, in ministries and in the IDF will discuss. It is expected that the public will be impressed - shocked even - from the insight that will be afforded. From what has been published to date, and of course on the basis of what State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss will be asked to report tomorrow in his appearance before the Knesset State Control Committee, the Olmert government emerges as a government of improvisation and amateurism, lacking orderly status reports, without a proper division of labor, delineation of responsibility or application of the emergency plans that had been available and on the basis of which exercises had been held.
The home front is not the sole example. The diplomatic effort is handled similarly. For some reason, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has been asked to explain the diplomatic failure that accompanied the negotiations and the formulation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 in a less demanding fashion than Peretz was asked to justify the defense-related effort. Israeli diplomacy under Olmert and Livni was not at its best during the war, from the start to the finish. The figure parallel to Chief of Staff Dan Halutz at the foreign ministry is its Director General Aharon Abramovitch, but he has not been asked to detail and justify if ministry resources were rallied and utilized in diplomatic contacts and appearances before the media. For example, what did Israel's missions to Washington and the United Nations do? And why were experienced ambassadors in important capitals in Europe not prepared so that they could contribute through their contacts?
Of all the excuses offered by Olmert and Peretz to their defense in recent months, the most upsetting is that they were new to the job. The prime minister and defense minister are expecting a forgiving attitude from the state comptroller, the Winograd Committee and the electorate because they had only had two to three months to warm up their seats on the day the war began in the North. No patient would accept a similar excuse from a doctor who had just completed his internship, and no homeowner would show understanding for a similar excuse from a plumber who comes to visit a leak and leaves behind him a deluge. Even if Winograd and Lindenstrauss can wait for Olmert to get ready, are Hassan Nasrallah and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad expected to also wait for him to announce that he is ready? Is Israel hereby declaring that it should not be attacked during the first quarter of a new government?
Whoever defends himself after the fact, after a failure, and argues that he had not been ready for his role, is admitting that he accepted the assignment from the voters under false pretenses. In Olmert's case this is a particularly dubious excuse after three years as vice premier in the government of Ariel Sharon and three months as acting prime minister. But even external candidates to the premiership are not exempt from in-depth preparation, or of personal responsibility for the working groups in the "shadow government."
The flimsy government of Olmert, and the embarrassing slips by Avi Dichter and Avigdor Lieberman in recent weeks, are signaling to the voters that an opinion, a party and appearing before the media are not enough. Expertise is essential. It is sad and ridiculous to think that out of this may emerge Benjamin Netanyahu, who made it to the post of prime minister lacking such expertise, having only served as an ambassador and deputy minister in the past.
Why Facebook Connect?
Comment on Haaretz.com articles with your Facebook login, and share your thoughts on your own wall.
- Latest
- Most Viewed
- Most Rated
- Open all
I'm sure Livni has learned and is still learning. People can see she has the ability to learn from her mistakes, and have expectations for this talented woman. She is quite effective, and is proving herself. This and knowing that good leaders don't grow on trees, is the reason people are going easier on her. She is NOT a faliure, just someone who was thrown in to a very difficult situation before she had the chance to gain the needed experience. Give her a break. The feeling of lost leadership is world wide; the media has exposed our leaders to be just human beings; some more talented than others. If we have too high expectations from our leaders and disqualify them too easily, we will find ourselves with an impatient dictator. Be carefull disgruntled people, we are all just human beings; prime ministers and foreign ministers are not Gods.
then prove who has better responsible experience and qualifications than Bibi. I actually participate in the Israeli elections as I did a year ago and will do it again in the upcoming elections to be held soon. All the other clowns facing Bibi are going to loose biggggggg! and you know it very well as I do.
"the edge of abyss that the "experienced" Olmert, Peres, Beilin, Peretz, Livni, Barak, Sharon, Dichter, Mofaz and Halutz brought it to." Bibi has no more experience than many of those you mention and a lot less than some. We've already had him and thanks, but really, no thanks. But you're welcome to him over there in the US. He won't be worse than what you've got.
Netanyahu may not have been experienced prior to serving as Prime Minister, but today he has quite a lot of experience: not only did he serve as P.M., he also served as Finance Minister and is widely credited (even by Haaretz) for having introduced structural changes to the Israeli economy which has caused the current economic boom in Israel.
Olmert please we beg of you... go home, leave this country to the one who really care... let BIBI come back...and please take your inteligent defense minister with you!
Netanyahu has nothing to do with any of these clowns, why even mention his name. After serving as prime minister once anything you say about him prior to that is irrelevant now. Currently it is Netanyahu who has the experience and the sound mind to pull Israel from the edge of abyss that the "experienced" Olmert, Peres, Beilin, Peretz, Livni, Barak, Sharon, Dichter, Mofaz and Halutz brought it to.
the olmert gov is trying so hard to keep the ship from sinking by emptying water with buckets... this whole comptroller madness is just a smkoe screen for his gov in order to prevent its true colors. i am just afraid , i cant imagine whose more appropriate to replace him...
Olmert does not exist anymore inn any case. The real issue is whether anything can be rectified before a next possible war.
Whoever the next Prime Minister will be 9hopefully soon)it would take tremedous effort to outdo olmert. I thought being stupid was a passive process. but watching Olmert I stand corrected.
If you don't have the expertise, you make it your business to acquire it before taking big decisions. But Olmert, having barely warmed that coveted yellow leather chair, decided to make a splash and inflated a grave border incident into a war without first checking his capacity to wage it. Since most of his grandiose gestures have ended in tears, he is now doing what he does best. But he should not be allowed to wriggle out of this one. He's no longer a lawyer in private practice, no longer a mayor with municipal services that run themselves leaving him free to swan off abroad to fundraise, canvass investment and be feted. He has to be made to face the electorate whose confidence in commonsense and leadership was so betrayed. Then he should vacate that yellow chair so that someone who puts country before self can occupy it
It is hoped the High Court will not decide to postpone the handing over / beginning of discussion of the State Comptroller?s preliminary report at the Knesset?s comptroller?s committee as planned. Completely irrelevant is who failed when and where concerning the enormous critics on official actions during a non declared military emergency. The report about the Home Front during ?Lebanon 2006 military engagement? of these 33 fighting days were actually a war, showing to the extreme the in-action / helplessness of government / IDF agencies concerned. Nearly a million Israelis faced unprepared daily bombardments, nearly without protection with sporadic / eventual functions of civil authorities etc these fighting / attacking days cannot be discussed away by anyone not the Prime Minister Olmert, other ministers, IDF High Command etc. The ?repair actions? taken since ?end of this military engagement? to rectify, to prepare for future additional possible attacks for Home Front civilian citizens are illustrated by the daily Qassam shootings from Gaza into Israel. Here are still missing to a large extent a the minimum precautions for its inhabitants ? including schools. In the Northern part of the country even the public shelters have not yet been ?adjusted to serve the local population in a possible emergency.? The Haifa Bay presents the same security problems as at the beginning of the Lebanon 2006 military engagement! In view of the above no further delay can be justified by anyone to postpone publication/ discussion/ consequently necessary action to adopt repair actions immediately. - Considerations of possible personal negative results by making public this first preliminary report on the Home Front can hardly be justified in view of the enormous public needs for unhindered solutions for all these s t i l l existing problems. Here the rule should be that public, national needs supercede all other consideration. It is very strange that in these ugly unjustified personal defense actions by PM, IDF and others to delay/ maybe to hide, whatever be applicable, all the voices are heard with the exception of an interim ruling by the Attorney General prior to any High Court decisions or Knesset voting. His decision is legally / juridical binding decision to be followed by government as ruling law.