February 2020 Activity Summary Report

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2019 Knight of Government Quality laureates were announced

MQG’s public committee had chosen the laureates of Knight of Government Quality for 2019. While daily we have been fighting against those who harm government quality in Israel, once a year we are privileged to grant Knight of Government Quality certificates to men and women who acted for the wellbeing of the country’s society, democracy and government quality in different subjects and by that enhanced government quality and integrity values in Israel. This year the committee was headed by former Supreme Court Justice Dalia Dorner and comprised the members: Dr. Adv. Eliad Shraga, Dr. Martin Weil, Ms. Merav Arlozorov, Ms. Adina Bar Shalom, Mr. Yehuda Glick and Adv. Mosheh Lador.

The laureates are as follows:

Judiciary category: Former Supreme Court Justice Elyakim Rubinstein ◆ Legislature category: Former Knesset Member Roy Folkman ◆ Executive category: Former Bank of Israel Governor Karnit Flug ◆ Local Government category: Mayor of Kiryat Byalik Eli Dukorsky ◆ Controlling Authority category: General (res.) Yitzhak Brik ◆ Social Struggle category: Lobby 99 Organization headed by Adv. Linor Deutsch ◆ Whistleblowers category: Shlomit Shemesh ◆ Communication category: Legal Affairs reporter for Channel 12 Guy Peleg ◆ Education and Culture category: Prof. Suzy Navot ◆ Military and Security category: Former IDF Chief of General Staff Gadi Eizenkot.

We petitioned the Supreme Court: No to immunity for Haim Katz

It is unbearable to have a governance reality that enables a Knesset member to legislate according to his own personal financial benefit and to that of his close friend. This act means avoiding prosecution by help of a members club named the Israeli Knesset. Our parliament has turned into a haven for those who evade the law. We petitioned against this sorry and unlawful decision.

A criminal past should not be erased! We demand from President Rivlin to refuse Olmert’s request of deleting his criminal record

It was recently released that former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert requested the President to delete his criminal record of fraud and breach of trust. Olmert had breached deliberately the trust of the public that voted for him – such acts cannot be deleted, nor forgotten or overlooked. Elected officials are expected to serve the public faithfully, without any discrimination and extraneous considerations. There is no reason whatsoever to accept Olmert’s request.

The 5th Dimension Affair

Close to the unveiling the 5th Dimension Affair we demanded from the Attorney General and from Israel Police to apply a comprehensive check of the issue and to implement relevant acts in order to ensure the prevention of such affairs that harm severely the rules of proper administration. In March 2019 the State Comptroller published a most severe report concerning Israel Police procurement. The report examined, inter alia, the terms of the police’s engagement with Fifth Dimension Company, and found some faults and defects. Discussions concerning the process of choosing a supplier comprised seniors in the Company – a fact that harms rules of equality and proper administration. Furthermore, the report found that preferring collaboration with Fifth Dimension Company was against the rules of equality and that all alongside the pilot process the police gave up intellectual property it owned – without establishing a proper consultation process. We welcome the recently declared examination process: it is absolutely necessary to check all this affair’s aspects, particularly if there was anyone in the police who ignored the procedures. In addition, we asked Acting State Attorney Adv. Dan Eldad for unveiling the process of decision-making that led to opening a criminal investigation of the affair in the sensitive period of elections that also comprised the applying of political pressures. We also asked the Attorney General for examining the process of decision-making regarding the affair. This request is based on the fear that the timing of opening the investigation may be linked to pressures applied on the Acting State Attorney by senior officials including the Minister of Public Security and the Minister of Justice. It is hard not to wonder why no advance had been achieved in this investigation for over a whole year – until this explosive time of elections.

Part of the Movement’s recent activities in the municipal area

We petitioned against Ramat Hasharon Municipality regarding a suspicion of fictionally employing a worker there ◆ We asked the police for opening an investigation concerning suspicions of a mayor’s criminal involvement ◆ We submitted Freedom of Information requests and inquiries concerning irregularities and forbidden appointments of gatekeepers (treasurers, legal counsels, internal auditors) in a number of local authorities state-wide ◆ We demanded from dozens of local authorities to check the placing of huge billboards without receiving any building permits as should be done according to the law, and in this way threatening the Public’s safety ◆ We won a Freedom of Information petition  against Bney Brak Municipality, following which we received dozens of documents concerning the city’s parking monitoring array. Currently we have been checking these documents ◆ More in Bney Brak: According to the Freedom of Information law, we submitted a request concerning suspicion of unlawful appointments of Rabbis ◆ We requested clarification regarding suspicion of a political appointment in Deir Hanna Local Council.

More for this month from the Movement’s desk

We petitioned against Beni Gantz who misused wounded soldiers in his campaign and against Naftali Bennet who did the same with childrens’ pictures. We have won! The publications had been removed ◆ We petitioned against Otzma Yehudit party that misused pictures of Haran family members of blessed memory (who were murdered by a terrorist). We won – the publication had been removed ◆ We demanded from Yamina party to remove a propaganda video that illegally presented IDF soldiers. The video had been removed ◆ we demanded from the PM’s office to remove from the PM’s formal page propaganda messages prohibited by law. The posts had been removed ◆ We demanded from the Economic Competition Authority to check the process of selling Golan Telecom that might stop competition in the cellular market and cost the public tens of millions of Shekels ◆ We acted in order to prevent alleged irregularities in Israel Consumers Council ◆ We demanded from the Privacy Protection Authority to cancel the Likud‘s voter register and to consider penalizing and administrative sanctions against the holder of the voter register in the Likud ◆ We called leaders of the parties running for election to refrain from recommending a defendant for the role of Prime Minister ◆ We won a Freedom of Information petition against the Ministry of Health: we received dozens of documents concerning operating of methadone distributing centers in the north of the country: we currently study the alleged irregularities in administering the tender ◆ We continued and deepened our care of a whistleblower who was dismissed from her job in IDF following her complaints. We hope she will soon receive a permanent protection order! ◆ We demanded from the Permits Committee to refrain from deciding in Netanyahu’s case before he pays the sums he is obligated to pay and submits the documents as he promised the Court to do ◆ We demanded from Israel Port Company to submit to us the documents relating to the tender of building the Chinese port in Haifa ◆ Following Judge Craif Affair and her texting Minister of Finance Kahlon, we demanded from the Minister of Justice to establish a governmental examination committee concerning the process of appointing judges in Israel ◆ We lectured to audiences all over the country in high schools and home meetings and held professional conferences on the issues of proper administration and whistleblowers. Just invite us – we’ll come to tell you about the variety of topics the Movement deals with!