Netanyahu appoints Roi Kahlon acting civil service commissioner in defiance of AG
Prime Minister’s Office praises new commissioner’s ‘extensive experience in senior management,’ dismisses claims he is unqualified for the position
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is officially appointing attorney Roi Kahlon as acting civil service commissioner, despite opposition from the Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, his office announced on Sunday.
In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office praised Kahlon’s “extensive experience in senior management” and said that Netanyahu had found “no gap” between his qualifications and his resumé.
Baharav-Miara’s office told Netanyahu last week that Kahlon did not meet the criteria for the position. In a position paper, Deputy Attorney General Gil Limon wrote that Kahlon claimed in his resumé to have far greater management experience than he actually had and that his appointment was therefore “unreasonable in the extreme.”
“He does not meet the qualification conditions,” wrote Limon.
However, in announcing he had chosen to go ahead with Kahlon’s appointment on Sunday, Netanyahu countered that he had “closely monitored his qualifications over the past year, and even received warm recommendations from senior figures in the public service and the law enforcement system.”
“I am certain that attorney Kahlon’s contribution will help strengthen the civil service for the benefit of all Israeli citizens, and I wish him success in his role as acting civil service commissioner,” the prime minister said.
Netanyahu’s recent decision to appoint Kahlon came after the government approved a measure last August allowing the prime minister to directly nominate the next commissioner rather than use a search committee.
The measure was opposed by Baharav-Miara, who argued that the plan was illegal and “creates a new situation whereby the prime minister will be able to choose a person he wishes to be appointed to the position who does not have to meet minimum professional threshold conditions of experience, skills or suitability.”
Baharav-Miara has instead insisted that the role of civil service commissioner, which involves supervising civil servants, be approved by a search committee headed by a retired Supreme Court justice, citing a 2018 government decision that was made to ensure the position’s independence. However, the process is not enshrined in legislation and was rejected by the government.
“An open competitive procedure must be established for the selection of the civil service commissioner to allow qualified candidates to compete for the position,” she said at the time.
In a statement last month announcing Kahlon’s selection, Netanyahu’s office wrote that the prime minister’s candidate has “extensive experience in the field of senior management, with impressive achievements in civil service.”
According to the statement, Kahlon began his public service with a 15-year stint at the State Attorney’s Office. During that time, he served for six years as an attorney for the attorney general and was also the supervisor for discipline in the Civil Service Commission. He also spent four years as head of the economic crime team.
Last year, he was appointed as head of the team at the Prime Minister’s Office combating an epidemic of violent crime in the Arab community.
In his position paper against the choice of Kahlon, however, Limon contended that the candidate did not have senior management experience of sufficient duration to qualify him for the job. He also noted that Kahlon claimed in his resumé to have far greater management experience than he actually has.
Limon nevertheless said that his position “should not detract from the importance of his [Kahlon’s] role in the State Attorney’s Office and the civil service.”
Amid the ongoing legal battle over the issue, the High Court of Justice froze the process for appointing a new permanent civil service commissioner, leaving the government to appoint a temporary placeholder commissioner instead.
Kahlon is succeeding former Civil Service Commissioner Daniel Hershkowitz, who left office last month following a September decision extending his tenure until December 12 or until another permanent commissioner could be appointed.
Despite this, he left office without a permanent successor.
