PM's home renovations cost NIS 350,000 in taxpayer money
After PM Netanyahu's remark to US Pres. Trump, that the budgetary oversight is so austere that the walls of the Prime Minister's Residence were only painted in honor of Trump's visit, it comes out that the paint job cost NIS 350,000.
The renovations of the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem cost around NIS 350,000 in taxpayers' money.
The general public first heard of these renovations when, during US President Donald Trump's visit to Israel, Netanyahu and wife, Sara, greeted Trump and wife, Melania, to their home, with the PM sarcastically saying, "welcome to our palace" and adding, "Thanks to you, we could paint the walls."
According to reports, the money allocated to the Prime Minister's Residence was actually spent on things such as refurbishing, upholstery, gardening, upgrading the home's communications infrastructure and attached news briefing room, as well as whitewashing and painting the house's walls.
The main question on people's minds, though, is why was none of the budget was used to renovate the home's notorious kitchen, despite the fact that photos and videos of its run-down condition keep surfacing.
One day after the aforementioned house tour, Nicol Raidman, a wealthy businesswoman who is a friend of Sara's friend and her got-to person for new clothes, was invited to the PM's home. During her visit, she photographed the kitchen and posted a video of it to her Twitter account, saying, "Where does the country's budget go to? I'm shocked."
"Is there no budget to renovate a kitchen for the prime minister? This is where you need to host the world's leaders? I'm ashamed. This is where they hosted Trump and cooked a meal for him? I've seen a lot of kitchens in my time, but I've never seen anything like this before."
In 2015, NIS 138,000 were allocated to renovate the house, and even more money was allocated toward renovating the Netanyahu's private home in Caesarea.
The kitchen at the center of the "scandal," which mainly serves the house's employees, remained untouched and kept being displayed in photos and videos. Another kitchen is reportedly used by the Netanyahus has indeed been renovated and is maintained.
The Prime Minister's Office responded, saying that "despite what is claimed, the PM's home does not have a second kitchen but a small dining room, where food is not prepared, and that room too was not changed or renovated for the past 21 years. All the food eaten by the Netanyahus is prepared in the kitchen shown in the photos."
(Translated & edited by Lior Mor)
