Anti-Netanyahu state’s witness not ruling out political career

Meni Naftali is one of the organizers of weekly anti-corruption rallies outside the Petah Tikva home of Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit.

By GIL HOFFMAN
Updated: OCTOBER 10, 2017 01:51
Meni Naftali (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Meni Naftali
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Meni Naftali, the controversial former manager of the Prime Minister’s Residence, who has become a state’s witness against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, told The Jerusalem Post on Monday that he could end up entering politics.
Naftali has tried to incriminate both Netanyahu and Sara on corruption charges. He is one of the organizers of weekly anti-corruption rallies outside the Petah Tikva home of Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit that were ruled legal by the High Court of Justice on Sunday.
“I am not a member of any party now, but if I get offered to run, why not?” Naftali said. “I would support anyone but Bibi. I would even run in [Joint List MK Ahmad] Tibi’s party. It’s all a game anyway.”
In an earlier interview with Galei Israel Radio, Naftali said that he was a physical laborer and was “not interested in being prime minister or a politician.”
When asked what would happen if he were made an offer to enter politics, he responded that he would do so only in the Likud and only after Netanyahu left politics.
Naftali said that former Likud minister Gideon Sa’ar could be a terrific prime minister, as could ministers Israel Katz or Gilad Erdan. But he later complained that Katz was responsible for the traffic jams during Sukkot.
Likud MK Nava Boker, who is close to Sara Netanyahu, refused to appear on screen with Naftali on Monday morning when they were both booked to appear on Channel 10’s morning show Orly and Guy.
“What am I, a criminal? Naftali asked. “I guess she was just scared of Sara.”
The other high-profile organizer of the Petah Tikva protests, attorney Eldad Yaniv, ran for the Knesset unsuccessfully in 2015 with the Zionist Union.