Netanyahu's secretive style of governance is an insult to his ministers

With no checks on his power and endless threats to call new elections, Netanyahu has turned running the country into a one-person show.

By JPOST EDITORIAL
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a press statement at the PM's office in Jerusalem, on August 13, 2020. (photo credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a press statement at the PM's office in Jerusalem, on August 13, 2020.
(photo credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)
In a shocking interview in the wake of Israel’s historic deal with the United Arab Emirates, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bragged that he had kept the deal secret from his own defense and foreign ministers. This was done, he claimed, because they might leak information about the deal.
This is an incredible insult to both Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz – who also serves as defense minister – and Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, who is also a former IDF Chief of Staff like Gantz. These two men served at the highest levels of the IDF and have been privy to Israel’s most secret information.
That Netanyahu purposely sidelined them has nothing to do with stopping leaks but is rather about his uncontrolled agenda to monopolize every decision so that no one else can ever be given credit for anything. It sends a ruinous message to foreign leaders looking to work with Israel: that they won’t know if the foreign and defense ministers are even relevant for discussions about Israeli policy.
This self-centered rule is not only eroding the foundations of Israeli democracy, but the very nature of what Israel is as a country. From its founding, Israel was never solely about one person: It was always about a collective. It was about people putting the interests of the Jewish nation first, and sacrificing for the country.
That is why when Israel won one of its most phenomenal victories, whether in 1948 or 1967, it did so as a team effort. The 1948 war was not waged by David Ben-Gurion as a private enterprise, never trusting any advisers, and Levi Eshkol did not wage the 1967 war by keeping information from his own key ministers.
Historically, Israel functioned well as a sum of its best people. Netanyahu is a product of this system. His background in the country’s most elite military unit and subsequent sojourn into politics were all about promoting the best this country had as part of a team effort. He rose as part of a system, from the army to the Likud Party to his various roles in politics.
Unfortunately, the last several years have seen increased domination and paranoia by Netanyahu that has led him to sideline politicians whom he views as a political threat. It has also seen him aggrandize himself by putting up to five ministries in his own hands in previous governments as well as calling three elections within a year to make sure that he alone is in power and doesn’t have to share power with any coalition.
The latest coalition has seen the prime minister continue the same style of government. With no checks on his power and endless threats to call new elections – as if elections are just a tool to stay in power forever – Netanyahu has turned running the country into a one-person show.
How could such a historic peace agreement be kept from key figures in the coalition? It wasn’t like he was just keeping it from the opposition. It was kept from Israel’s own defense minister and minister of foreign affairs. This is an embarrassment.
Menachem Begin was invited into the unity government during the crisis of 1967 as part of a show of unity. Begin, in turn, trusted others in his government during historic decisions. Prime minister Yitzhak Rabin fought but also shared his achievements with Shimon Peres.
Israel was built by phenomenal people who understood that the country rises and falls with everyone together. Sidelining former chiefs of staff who oversaw some of the most sensitive military operations in our history – many of which are still classified – makes Israel appear more like a monarchy, and actually harms Netanyahu’s legacy.
It is a black mark on the deal with the UAE that instead of it being a combined effort, it was kept secret in a petty manner from key officials in the coalition. To add insult to injury, Netanyahu then bragged about keeping it secret because Gantz and Ashkenazi might potentially leak the news to close associates.
Ashkenazi didn’t leak details when the Syrian reactor was bombed in 2007 – and Gantz did not leak details of secret operations behind enemy lines when he was chief of staff.
What happened with the UAE deal is not the way a government is meant to function.
Stop this charade, Netanyahu. Start working with your ministers.