Comptroller: Minister Simhon arranged kickbacks for himself, family
State comptroller conducted in-depth investigation of Agriculture Minister, finds that agriculture minister promoted reform in egg and poultry industry that substantially benefited him and his family. Only later did he declare conflict of interests, reported 'allegedly inaccurate information'
Minister Shalom Simhon laid golden eggs for himself and his family: The State Comptroller Report 60B published Tuesday afternoon revealed grave findings regarding the conduct of Agriculture Minister Shalom Simhon, which helped himself and his family to receive significant benefits.
In 2006, Simhon pushed through a reform of the egg and poultry industry meant to encourage the relocation of chicken coops from town centers to locations determined by the Agriculture Ministry via grants provided from the State budget. The reform gave preference to towns in the north, including the minister's moshav.
The report also found that the minister acted contrary to a cabinet decision when he authorized additional foreign workers to enter the country while failing to pass on correct information on the matter.
Minister Simhon in action (Photo: Gadi Kabalo)
The reform in the egg and poultry industry initially originated in the wake of the avian flu epidemic and an effort to improve the production layout of eggs for consumption in an environmentally friendly manner.
The reform gave preference to the north. While a grant given to a chicken coup owner in the center was between NIS 108,000 (about $28,830) and NIS 400,000 (about $106,775), a chicken coop owner in the north was made eligible for a grant between NIS 270,000 (about $72,000) and NIS 1 million (about $270,000). The reform included an article stipulating that egg producers in the towns in Marom Galil who transferred their egg quota to residents of other towns would be eligible for a grant to help them start an alternative business in the field of agriculture or tourism.
The comptroller wrote in his report that the reform implies real economic benefits for egg producers in the north, including for the minister and his family who live in Marom Galil. In light of this, State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss stated that Simhon was obligated to declare immediately upon dealing with reform his personal interest in the matter by sending a notification to the state comptroller as well as the attorney general. The minister did not do this despite being actively involved in promoting the reform.
'Promoted, then declared'
However, it was only in January 2007 that Simhon contacted the state comptroller regarding conflict of interests even though he had already participated in discussions in his ministry and other places promoting the reform.
It was also found that the minister himself was involved in the preparation of the reform bill and consolidating its guiding principles and even summed up the work with the Finance Ministry. Only after doing all this, Simhon notified the state comptroller and other officials that he has a personal stake in the matter and intended to abstain from making a decision on the matter.
"The minister's notification in hindsight of his connection prevented a proper and timely examination of the conflict of interests and pre-establishing proper arrangements in such a way that would ensure normalcy of procedures and public trust in government actions," wrote Lindenstrauss.
Lindenstrauss (L) submitting the report to Knesset Speaker Rivlin (Photo: Gil Yohanan)
In response to the comptroller, Minister Simhon wrote that he has vast experience in the field of agriculture, especially egg-laying. According to him, it was based on this experience that he was chosen to serve as agriculture minister in three governments. He added that the regulations for preventing conflict of interest apply to all public servants and are not meant to prevent them from fulfilling the responsibilities of their post.
Simhon did not receive a professional opinion from the state comptroller on the matter, nor the required authorization to digress from the regulations.
Lindenstrauss ruled that the agriculture minister "acted in disaccord with the regulations for preventing conflict of interests of ministers and deputy ministers in his promotion of a reform in the egg industry. The minister has a personal stake in the reform, which includes real kickbacks both for his family members living in the towns of Marom Galil and for himself as the next generation of the town."
Simhon: It is only a technical comment
In response to the report, the agriculture minister's office said, "The state comptroller's comment is only technical, regarding the timetable of the minister's notification on conflict of interests. The minister and the Agriculture Ministry's legal advisors do not share the comptroller's opinion regarding the interpretation of conflict of interests. In their eyes, the state comptroller expanded the interpretation of conflict of interests in such a way that absurdly does not allow a minister who hails from the collective agriculture settlements to serve as agriculture minister."
They added, "It can be understood from the report that the minister decided to promote the reform so as to promote benefits for him and his family, and this is not so. The government decision is the fruit of collaboration between four government ministries: Agriculture Ministry, Finance Ministry, Interior Ministry, and Environmental Protection Ministry. Is it conceivable that these four ministries would promote a joint bill in order to benefit the family of any minister?"
Lindenstrauss' report also mentioned the procedures involved in awarding the prestigious Israel Prize.
Last April a petition was submitted to the High Court of Justice against the Israel Prize committee over its decision to award the prize to the Israel Democracy Institute. The petitioners claimed three committee members were associated with the institute.
Allegations have also been raised about possible conflict of interests of other people associated with the prize committee.
The comptroller also examined the maintenance of some 66,000 public housing apartments, meant to house needy families for a low price.
Lindenstrauss found deficiencies in the buildings and in their maintenance.
