Erdan supported 4-year term for IDF chief
After being criticized for refusing to extend term of police commissioner, record shows Minister Erdan, as an opposition MK, once supported proposal but in 2016 rejected it.
During the 17th Knesset (2006-2009), MK Gilad Erdan—currently the public security minister—signed a bill proposal which sought to set the term of the chief of staff at four years.
The proposal, submitted by MK Yuval Steinitz, came on the heels of the 2005 disengagement from Gaza and the government’s decision not to extend the term of the then IDF Chief of Staff Moshe Ya’alon, who opposed the disengagement initiative, for a fourth year.
Last week, Minister Erdan announced that he will not extend the term of Police Commissioner Roni Alsheikh by a fourth year and is seeking a replacement to the commissioner when his three year term ends in December.
Erdan was harshly criticized by opposition Knesset members who charged that the decision stemmed from political considerations, mainly the Likud Party's dissatisfaction over the police investigation into alleged wrongdoings by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Two years ago, MK Elazar Stern (Yesh Atid) submitted a bill proposal seeking to clearly define the length of term of the heads of the security agencies in order to prevent a situation in which the extension of terms depended upon political considerations. Coalition members, Erdan among them, rejected the proposal.
MK Stern said on Friday that “not extending the police chief’s term because of the investigation of the prime minister sends a message not only to the next commissioner but also all the senior police officers in Israel.”
Stern asserted that the government was trying to send a warning: “If you want to be promoted and serve as commissioner or deputy commissioners, do not engage in investigations of ministers and the prime minister.”
Stern added: “Precisely in order to prevent such an occurrence is why I proposed standardizing the service term of the police commissioner and the chief of staff to four years, a bill Netanyahu rejected twice.”
