Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana announced Sunday that the Knesset will not hold a new vote for the position of State Comptroller, despite a proposal by High Court justices to resolve the “dispute” through another vote.
Earlier this month, the Knesset elected Adv. Michael Rabillo to the position of State Comptroller. In typical fashion, left-wing and opposition parties submitted petitions to the High Court against the appointment, claiming that the vote was tainted since coalition MKs took selfies of themselves voting for Rabillo after they were ordered to do so by senior Likud officials. It was also claimed that Rabello has a conflict of interest due to his role as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s attorney.
It should be noted that the legal adviser to the Knesset approved the vote as meeting all legal requirements. In addition, there was no proof that coalition members were told whom to vote for. Nonetheless, instead of throwing out the petitions, the High Court continued its unchecked overreach and issued a statement announcing that it intends to issue a conditional order against the appointment. At the same time, Deputy President of the Court Justice Noam Sohelberg “suggested” that the Knesset could resolve the matter on its own by deciding to hold a new vote.
It should be noted that the hearing took place despite the fact that every High Court justice has a conflict of interest because the unsuccessful candidate for State Comptroller, Justice Yosef Elron, was one of their own colleagues. But according to the law, if all members of a court have the same conflict, the court may still hear the case.
Attorney Ilan Bombach, who represented the respondents, argued during the hearing: “They did not meet even the minimum evidentiary burden. To justify a conditional order, there must be at least a minimal amount of evidence.”
Ohana rejected the proposal, issuing a statement saying: “For all the reasons detailed in the preliminary response to the petition and during the hearing, the Knesset Speaker has decided not to hold a repeat vote for the position of State Comptroller.”
On X, Ohana wrote: “The Knesset has spoken.”
(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)
