"I would like the authority of ministers to appoint directors to government companies to be canceled," Government Companies director general Ori Yogev said today. Yogev criticized the current situation, in which ministers can appoint candidates not included in the panel as public directors in what is called "matching directors." "In my opinion, they should put an end to matching directors outside the panel. I doubt whether there is a solid legal basis for this procedure," he said.
In a press brief on the occasion of beginning the procedures for selecting the third directors panel, Yogev was cautious about criticizing ministers on this question. When asked about the procedures for privatizing and offering the public minority shares in government companies, in which the Government Companies Authority has been unsuccessfully contending with opposition from politicians, he said, "As a civil servant, it is not my job to criticize the government for which I work. When the government makes a decision not to accept a professional opinion, it has the right to do so. Our job is to manage the government companies, so that they work in excellent fashion for the public's benefit. The state's policy is set by the political echelon."
Asked about his decision to hold his press briefing today against instructions from Minister of Finance director general Shai Babad, and despite warnings from the Ministry of Finance spokesperson that he would face a disciplinary hearing, he answered, "This is a misunderstanding that we will arrange and explain. It is my duty to maintain contact with the media, and to make the process (of assembling the panel) accessible, using all the means at my disposal."
The figures presented by Yogev indicate that the government companies made an aggregative NIS 2-2.5 billion profit in 2016. He predicted that the aggregate profit would reach NIS 3 billion in 2017, close to the companies' long-term target of 5% of their NIS 70 billion business turnover, adding, "There is a real change in the government companies, and there is no doubt that the reform led by the Government Companies Authority, based on removing politics from them, is the main cause of the change."
Asked about Minister of Defense Avigdor Liberman's appointment of Uzi Landau and Yair Shamir, his confidants, to key positions in defense companies, Yogev answered, "The process of change being promoted by the Government Companies Authority is Sisyphean. All the current public directors in Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI) (TASE: ARSP.B1) and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. are from a panel. I think that in time, actions like the one you mentioned will stop. Success is not guaranteed without separating the companies from politics. This is a war that must continue in the long term. If we are successful in it, the companies will change."
The processes for assembling and selecting the panel of directors were opened today with the publication of announcements summoning anyone who regards himself as suitable to submit his candidacy for the third panel. The processes will conclude with the assembling of the panel in June. For the first time, weight will be given in the panel to candidates with proven ability in innovation. Preference will be given to haredi (ultra-Orthodox) candidates, immigrants from Ethiopia, and people with disabilities. Yogev assembled the first panel of directors in 2014 and the second one in 2015. According to the figures Yogev presented today, 280 directors in 60 government companies have been selected to date from the 1,000 members of the two panels. Half of the appointed directors are women, and 16% are members of minority groups.
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on January 23, 2017
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2017