When any elected official spends money without authorization it elicits the ire of the public but this is that much more the case when it comes to former Knesset Speaker MK (Labor) Dalia Itzik, who is quick to pass judgment on her colleagues, always exhibiting an air of upmanship and superiority, not to mention a measure of righteous indignation.

The latest Itzik scandal was released by Channel 2 News, uncovering the former speaker spent NIS 75,000 of taxpayer funds for a four-night stay in a Paris hotel three years ago. She booked the luxury suit after deciding the reservations that were made for her were not suitable for her as speaker of the Israeli parliament. Her original reservation was made in the Park Hyatt Hotel at the cost of €750 a night, but she said it was simply too small. Officials explained that a cancellation fee would be involved, a substantial one, but she was adamant, refusing to accept the room.

She was then offered a room in the Hotel Le Bristol at €1,300 a night, but this too was unacceptable, eventually settling for the suite costing €1,995 a night, about NIS 11,000.

The report adds that someone “familiar with the report” added that her original room did not include a lounge and therefore did not meet security specifications.  The source added that if she was unable to hold meetings, the accommodations were unacceptable and it is unfair to report that the speaker herself requested a change in her room.    

YWN recently reported that Itzik has made payment, returning Knesset funds for a new floor she had installed in her home under the guise of saving the Knesset money, enabling her to use her home to entertain instead of a hotel.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)