Land grab

January 27, 2011 - 7:10 PM by

Yoav Galant

One of the most frustrating parts of living in Israel is when people think they’re above the law. You see it on the highways (speeding, not yielding the right of way in a traffic circle) and in apartment complexes (doing construction in shared areas without clearing it with the other residents first), just to name a few.

But when a public official is caught blatantly abusing his position by grabbing land that doesn’t belong to him, that reflects badly on all of us. Which is why it’s so upsetting that the nominee for the next IDF Chief of Staff, Yoav Galant, was found in a report published today by State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss to have illegally taken property belonging to the moshav in which he lives…and then lied in not one but two affidavits on the matter.

Galant’s response: it’s not my fault. Blame my lawyer. Blame my contractor.

The specifics of the case involve Galant planting a grove of olive trees on public land that he did not own, building a private driveway to his property through another patch of land, and building additional floor space in his home without a permit (for which he swore under oath that he had requested but did not).

The issues were raised on behalf of the moshav by the Green Movement. Attorney-General Yehuda Weinstein must now decide, on the basis of the state comptroller’s findings, whether to defend Galant’s IDF appointment in the High Court against the Green Movement’s petition.

All this would be annoying but unfortunately Middle Eastern typical if this were not the guy who is supposed to be protecting us from Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas and any other militaries gunning for our destruction. If he rolls over his neighbors, what other “liberties” will he take with the law? And his “blame the other guy” attitude doesn’t bode well either.

With no other viable candidate for the position in sight, and outgoing Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi involved in his own scandal, losing Galant would be a serious blow to the country’s preparedness. But the alternative – letting a accused criminal off the hook because he’s considered indispensable – would send a message to the rest of the country that I don’t want to consider.

Tags: , , , • Category: Politics 

Comments

4 Comments on Land grab

  1. Mike Jacobs on Thu, Jan 27th 2011 11:25 PM

    2. Anywhere in the world, not just in Israel, this sort of thing goes on. Look at how Cheney and Haliburton benefited from the Iraq war. Look at how much Jimmy Carter gets from the Saudis and…surprise, he publishes a book calling Israel an apartheid state. How about those Russian billionaires and all the money they’ve made from stealing state owned natural resources for themselves. This is everywhere, but since Israel is so tiny, everything is magnified. I see Eli Yishai is returning too. You’re right though Brian, this sort of thing shouldn’t happen and guys like Galant shouldn’t be considered for Chief of Staff.

  2. Land Grab on Tue, Feb 1st 2011 10:41 AM

    3. [...] article was published last week on the Israelity [...]

  3. Kim on Wed, Feb 2nd 2011 9:59 PM

    4. Just be thankful you live in Israel and not the United States. Theres more corruption here than you can shake a stick at!

  4. philip on Fri, Feb 4th 2011 1:56 PM

    5. Brian. Excellent points. I have become more extreme and would like to see a revolution take place just like in Egypt. I have seen the inside of the faschist beastbn controlling
    our destiny. It is time to fight for justice and democracy. It is time for an Israeli uprisng.

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