At present, it appears that Shas party leader Aryeh Deri will be serving a Minister of the Interior in the next government. Shas however is also working hard to gain control of the Ministry of Religious Services, which is controlled by the Bayit Yehudi party in the outgoing administration.
Shas controlled that ministry in the 18th Knesset and is tenacious in its efforts to regain control over the ministry.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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3 Responses
How will SHAS help the poor & forgotten by heading Ministry of Interior???
Re comment no. 1: I don’t know about the poor, but the forgotten apparently include the Shas leader, Aryeh Deri, as Shas supporters have evidently forgotten that he has been convicted and served time for having his hands (and maybe his elbows) in the Israeli public treasury. Why is this guy still electable, even in Israel’s wacky parliamentary system? Evidently, Shas voters have no shame.
To #2: it’s been about 15 years, so it’s understandable that you might have forgotten that he was not convicted of taking public money, but rather accepting financial consideration as “payment” for doing favors for some big contractors and businessmen. Not condoning it, but it’s not what you say he did. He didn’t put public money in his pocket. And if the Israeli system allows him to be elected, why should the Shas voters be ashamed?
As to how can Shas help the poor by heading the Interior Ministry — the ministry controls considerable budgets that are apportioned to municipalities and local governments’ welfare departments. Shas has helped this sector in the past, and probably intends to in the future if it gets the Interior Ministry.
Standard disclaimer: I’m not a Shas voter or even sephardi. Just trying to help keep all our heads level.