Livni: Barak does not value his own words

"The conduct of Labor and (Chairman Ehud) Barak is another layer shattering the lack of trust relations between the public and its elected leaders. It is in the State's favor to restore that trust.

"What we saw yesterday was another ugly political expression. I was saddened to see such politics yesterday. I have no joy over poor management of another party," Livni stated.

Labor's Central Committee voted in favor of Barak's coalition bid Tuesday, effectively enabling the party to join Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition. Barak was also granted the authority to name the ministers to the various offices offered to Labor in the new government.

The Kadima chairwoman said she did not regret not joining Netanyahu's government. According to Livni, "The stability of a government which has nothing to do with the favor of the State is unimportant.

"This is a government with no basic values, which are the fundamental thing in politics. Stability is not a value in itself. Unfortunately, what we saw yesterday was another ugly political expression."

'Labor formed Netanyahu government'

Livni added that "from a logical and numerical aspect, Labor formed the Netanyahu government yesterday. Sitting in a government in which I am a permanent minority is something I object to and don't believe in. It contradicts everything I represent.

"I believe the public will judge. I am not looking to build myself up from other people's failures."

The Kadima chairwoman went on to say that in light of the ideological split within the Labor Party, it is possible that several connections will take place in the future with people who no longer feel they belong in their original parties.

"What happened yesterday stressed one thing: Regardless of the opinions each of us holds on different opinions, we saw within Labor's internal politics as well a new division.

"The division is between ideological leadership and a leadership which is no longer that way, and I don't want to get into those people's nicknames."

Barak at Labor's Central Committee (Photo: AP)

Livni also slammed the coalition agreements signed by the Likud, and accused Netanyahu of paying billions of shekels to his coalition partners in the midst of a grave financial crisis.

"There are two problems revealed from these agreements. There are payments of billions in a very grave economic situation, particularly when we know that the financial situation was glorified in order to enter the government.

"The second thing lies in the fact that the government's contents have no news in the diplomatic aspect, and bring bad news in terms of the rule of law. This is not a personal issue of (Finance Minister-designate) Yaakov Ne'eman, but the fact that one party is taking over all the relevant components in the rule of law system," she said, hinting to the involvement of Foreign Minister-designate Avigdor Lieberman, who is suspected of criminal offenses, in determining the identity of the government's ministers.

"There is nothing in the agreement with Labor that guarantees the stability of the rule of law in the future, and it's severe particularly in a time when the relationship between politics and the courts has reached a great point of crisis."

As for the future, Livni believes that Kadima will survive the opposition and work to replace the government.

"Kadima's power derives from what Kadima does," stressed the woman who will soon take the opposition chairwoman role. "We are not built up by other people's conduct. Our power lies in the fact that we have a clear way, as well as a leadership which does not view the essence of its life in seats.

"Our power is also in our unity, and I see among the public good responses to our conduct. I believe in what I have done. In choosing between being in the opposition and taking all the trust and throwing it into a government whose way is not our way and remaining a minority – we did the right thing," she concluded.