Despite the recent chatter by politicians and pundits regarding the possibility of early elections, the government remains fundamentally stable and is unlikely to collapse due to the present coalition crisis, Health Minister Yaakov Litzman (United Torah Judaism) said Tuesday.
“Calm down; there won’t be any early elections and next year I’ll still be right here,” Litzman said.
While Litzman himself released a joint statement on Sunday with Interior Minister Aryeh Deri (Shas) and MK Moshe Gafni (UTJ) opposing early elections, he nevertheless argued that the present crisis between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon (Kulanu) would soon blow over.
The crisis arose after Netanyahu backtracked on his support for the closure of the government-controlled Israel Broadcasting Authority and its replacement with the Israel Public Broadcasting Agency.
While Netanyahu has argued the IBA has made great headway in eliminated its budgetary problems and cracked down on nepotism in hiring practices, Kahlon has remained adamant the authority be dismantled as originally planned.
“I don’t know what this broadcasting agency is,” said Litzman. “I have no idea whatsoever. No one asked me about it or talked to me and I don’t understand what the argument is even about. What I do know is that when there is an argument, the two sides talk and work things out. I estimate that [the crisis] will be over within a few days.”