HCJ freezes appointment of new Justice Ministry Director-General by Ohana
The freezing of the appointment by the HCJ was done after a petition was filed by Movement for Quality Government in Israel NGO against the firing of Emi Palmor.
By AVISHAI GRINZAIG/MAARIVLikud MK Amir Ohana reads during a debate in the Knesset plenum (photo credit: Courtesy)
The High Court of Justice ordered the freezing of the appointment of attorney Ofir Cohen as Justice Ministry director-general – previously manned by Emi Palmor who was fired by Justice Minister Amir Ohana – following a petition filed by the Movement for Quality Government in Israel against the firing of Palmor.The NGO petitioned last week with the assistance of attorneys Eliad Shraga, Tomer Naor, Zohar Altman-Refael and Alon Sapir against Ohana, demanding that the High Court rules against the firing of Palmor, which was done with no authority and against the proper rules of administration.“The Justice Ministry is not Ohana’s private property,” said Shraga, the NGO’s CEO. “He too is bound by the instructions of the attorney-general during a transitional government, and he too will have to learn the hard way that he is not above the law. It was a disgraceful decision driven by foreign considerations by a temporary minister without any authority.”Ohana responded to the court’s decision on Wednesday saying that “Col. (res.) Attorney Ofir Cohen is one of the most deserving appointments in the government ministries. This is a man who gave his most beautiful years to ensure the State’s security and carries the heavy burden on his body. He has the appropriate legal and managerial skills as determined by the Senior Appointments Committee of the Civil Service Commission, which has been discussing his appointment carefully. I hope and assume that the Supreme Court will be impressed with this as well.”The Israel Democracy Party, headed by Ehud Barak, also referred to the High Court’s decision, saying “The High Court is the last barrier against those who wish to turn Israel into Sicily. The dismissal of Emi Palmor, a professional and esteemed director-general who served for five years, was a corrupt act whose entire purpose was to allow the appointment of a close person to one of the important positions in the State of Israel. The High Court alone cannot withstand the erosion of the suspect from Balfour [Street] – therefore the citizens of Israel must replace the corrupt prime minister with a clean government that works for the public. The upcoming election should not be won – the upcoming election MUST be won.”MK Revital Swid from the Labor-Gesher Party said, “It is very good that the High Court issued a stop sign for Ohana – a temporary justice minister in a transitional government – and in fact has been sent to make sure that the next state attorney is friendly to Bibi and will help him escape justice. We hope that very soon the High Court’s stop sign will turn into a bright red traffic light, which will make it clear to Netanyahu and Ohana that there is a limit to every trickery.”
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