In the Economy Committee held today (Monday) on the impact of the state of war on the procedures for privatizing Israel Post, a stormy discussion ensued, during which David Amsalem, the minister who liaises between the government and the Knesset, attacked the Director of the Companies Authority, Michal Rosenbaum, who responded to him.
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"When I was in charge of the Companies Authority last term, I made a decision to privatize the Post Office by 40%. The post office is an uneconomic service and therefore it loses money. This is a service that the state is obligated to provide, regardless of how much it costs. Public transportation by definition is money that loses all over the world. It is the duty of government and past governments to provide services to citizens. The idea was to introduce a little more economic thinking: to bring in a foreign investor and change the atmosphere. Why not 100%? Because if it is 100% there will be no mail," Amsalem claimed.
At this point, the minister attacked the conduct of Michal Rosenbaum, the current director of the Companies Authority: "I want to tell the director of the Companies Authority, that you are invited to a discussion in the Knesset, you have to inform the minister. She does as she pleases, and I'm not aware of things. When the war began, I called the Director of the Companies Authority following a request I received from you. I asked to slow down. She'll say soon that it's not accurate. That's my controversy, it's mostly heretical. She thinks she runs the companies. During the war, I mainly asked to put everything aside. I called her and her people. Until now, I'm not allowed to meet with any employee of the Companies Authority, and I'm the minister in charge of the Companies Authority."
The Companies Authority building in Jerusalem, photo: Lior Mizrahi
He continued: "I don't even know the list of employees. I don't even know who signs the attendance card when she comes to work. This is total lawlessness. During the war, I started checking a friend, a friend, what it was doing.
I asked her to appoint directors in all the companies, in order to strengthen the managerial echelon in the companies. The article I got in the newspaper the next day – that I was worried about political appointments. This is the event. I am describing a month-long reality. What does a minister in the State of Israel do with an official who thinks she is the prime minister, a minister and the director-general. From the moment Israel Post is privatized, Israel Post will not reach the periphery, remember what I said."
Rosenbaum referred to the request of the Be'eri Printing Company to be partners in the process of privatizing the postal service, and finally also addressed Amsalem's accusations: "The people of Israel, and especially in the southern settlements, are experiencing one of the greatest disasters the country has ever known. The murder of children, women, rape, looting, abductees who have been held captive for weeks, and the heart is broken. It is not for nothing that one of the first events that came back into operation, and this is a symbol of revival, is the Barry pattern. In a parallel world, we manage the privatization process by mail. Privatization is of national importance, certainly at a time like this. We are committed to a short and determined process, while not infringing on the rights of the Bari Press. This is not a simple dilemma. On the one hand, there is not simple privatization. On the one hand, we have privatization, and on the other hand, one of the contenders is dealing with a terrible tragedy."
Israel Post office, photo: Moshe Shai
"At the same time as rehabilitation, they have to deal with this process. If the Competition Authority approves, it is of enormous importance that the Bari Press take part in the matter. I also pledge that we will do it with maximum sensitivity. Before concluding, Minister Amsalem. Please, this is not the time for Politka. At least for now. This is the time to take a responsible opinion."
Amsalem replied: "The only one doing politics is you. Look at how many articles you've published in the newspapers. About 100-150 articles about me. That's your hypocrisy, Ali." He also referred to the request of the Bari Press: "I did not come to discuss privatization, but rather the request of the Bari Printing Company to postpone because of their situation, and because they submitted a request for a tender. However, I am aware of the problems because of the state of the post office and the need for privatization. I hope we can come up with an outline that will help the Barry printing press and what's happening in the mail."
The aftermath of the destruction at Kibbutz Be'eri, photo: Oren Ben Hakon
Ben Suchman, CEO of Be'eri Printing, said: "On October 7, I was with my family in the safe room all day. Many of my friends were murdered, more than 85. We have over 25 wounded. My mother was murdered. Fortunately, we gathered courage and strength and managed to return to work at the factory after a short period of time. Bari Printing employs 400 people and is the largest place in the envelope. Thanks to the power of the community and the power of the Bari printing press, we were able to make the move of returning. More than 150 workers arrive daily in an armored bus. The Bari printing press is an important component of postal operations. We applied to be a partner in the privatization process. We thought it would suit our activities. The chaos we're in doesn't allow us to be part of the process at this stage."
"Finance officials are trying to support and help and create a postponement for a month or two, so that our representatives will enter the process. If the process starts without us, our percentage to win will decrease dramatically. Therefore, in my view, the order of the day is to wait six months with privatization. A process that has taken 15 years, should give Barry an opportunity to be part of that process. I think there is a national interest, priority should be given to the Bari printing press and the Gaza envelope."
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