J'lem mayor faces questioning for dirty city

Investigation was launched after the mayor ignored 5 Environment Ministry clean-up orders.

By ETGAR LEFKOVITS
lupolianski 224.88 (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
lupolianski 224.88
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
In a burgeoning scandal, Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupolianski is reportedly facing questioning by the Environment Ministry's 'green police' for ignoring directives to clean public sites in the city. Earlier this year, the Environment Ministry opened a criminal investigation against Lupolianski for failing to properly clean the city, in the wake of an amalgamation of waste and garbage at five city sites, which include the city's main Givat Shaul cemetery. The investigation was launched after the mayor ignored five clean-up orders signed by the Environment Ministry's Jerusalem district director Shoni Goldberger. Lupolianski spokesman Gidi Schmerling said Sunday that two of the five dirty garbage sites in question have already been cleaned, while three additional locations will be cleared within the next three weeks. The total cost of the clean-up project stands at NIS 1.2 million, he added. An Environment Ministry spokesman said Sunday that the issue was under investigation and declined further comment. The Jerusalem weekly Yerushalayim reported this weekend that Lupolianski is due to be questioned by the ministry's green police in the coming week. But officials said Sunday that the questioning may be postponed due to the week-long Hanukka holiday. The criminal investigation against the Jerusalem Mayor is especially jarring since Lupolianski has put the issue of city sanitation and cleanliness at the forefront of his priorities since he was elected mayor two and a half years ago.