Sara Netanyahu chose the disgrace of an indictment over common sense
Op-ed: The charges filed against the prime minister’s wife tell the story of a petty woman who has been doing everything in her power to impose her personal and family expenses on the State of Israel. She could have easily avoided such a shameful indictment by paying a reasonable sum, but why would the Netanyahu family put its hand into its own pocket?
All those who believe the repeated claims made by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his associates about ongoing personal persecution of the prime minister’s wife should read the indictment. I think even those who are convinced that "there is nothing because there was nothing" will get the impression that there actually was something.
If this isn’t about a psychological problem which some good therapy may have been able to solve, or at least to save her from an indictment, the charges revealed on Thursday tell the story of a petty and stingy woman who does everything she can to impose her personal expenses and her family’s expenses on the state. And the state, might I remind you, is us. It isn’t them.
This indictment confirms many stories we have already heard about the prime minister’s wife. For example, that she cursed and shouted at Naftali Bennett and Ayelet Shaked who had received a salary from Netanyahu as part of his bureau staff without her knowledge, accusing them of robbing her sons from their last slice of bread. Not to mention every single expense, from memorial candles to outdoor furniture, which the public has been required to fund. And although we were familiar with the stories, this is the first time we receive an official legal authorization that the first lady is simply a liar.
It turns out that it’s not takeout trays, as Benjamin Netanyahu mockingly referred to it, but gourmet meals from luxury restaurants. Thousands of shekels per meal are not exactly a takeout tray from a diner in the market. Mahneyuda may be a restaurant at the Mahane Yehuda Market, but it costs thousands of shekels.
And the “cup of tea for Sara’s ill father” turned out to be five days in which an employee cared for the righteous woman’s father, for at least 18 hours. It’s true that this isn’t something we like to deal with. After all, we’re talking about an ill person here, and about the prime minister’s wife, but no one here is above the law for now. And most importantly, if the prime minister’s wife considered it a natural thing for an employee of the residence to care for her father, why did she have to hide it instead of explicitly admitting that she did it?
Sara Netanyahu could have easily avoided such a shameful indictment, if only she had been willing to put her hand in the family pocket—which there is no reason to pity, by the way. It really isn’t poor.
She wouldn’t have even had to pay the entire sum. Exceptional gestures were offered and promised. All she had to do was to agree to pay a reasonable sum.
But why would the Netanyahu family, which is doing the State of Israel a big favor by agreeing to rule us, put its hand into its private pocket?
Why, Bibi could have been a huge tycoon or, alternatively, the president of the United States. Israel isn’t worth his time or energy. He kindly agreed to downgrade himself and settle for Israel. So you expect us to pay for our expenses from our own pocket?
Sara Netanyahu chose the disgrace of an indictment over logic. She chose to expose her pettiness and stinginess over common sense. We would have expected her to settle the issue as quickly as possible, to pay and remove the issue from the agenda. If not for her, then out of respect for the prime minister. But the urge is so strong, the traits are so obsessive, that they control her.
There is a bright side, however, in this whole business: Despite the long time that has passed, the delays and the holdups, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit has proved that he is not afraid of the Netanyahu family. And this comes as bad news for the prime minister with all his investigations.
On the other hand, there are those who say that he may be indicting Sara to let Netanyahu off the hook in the future.
Who knows?
