Meli Polishuk, Huldai, Gaydamak Favored For Mayor in Ra'anana, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem

Many voters view Meli Polishuk as the solution
to Ra'anana's financial and environmental crisis.

By Herb Brandon
Israel News Agency

Tel Aviv --- November 11, 2008...... As voters in Israel set out to cast their votes today in local municipal elections, Meli Polishuk (Polishook), Ron Huldai and Arcadi Gaydamak are set to secure the seats of mayor in Ra'anana, Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Meli Polishuk (Polishook) is challenging incumbent Mayor Nachum Hofree (Hofri) on the grounds of providing more responsible government. Hofri (Hofree) is accused of placing Ra'anana into both a financial and environment crisis, owing the Israel banks and city workers more than 600 million schekels. The Israel News Agency cannot confirm nor deny this figure.

Hofri is also criticized for taking Israel from being the cleanest city in Israel to a ranking of number 8, over building and commercialization which has created more traffic and pollution, and supervising a child welfare department which practices gender bias discrimination in court custody cases against divorced fathers.

"Many mayors were approached by members of Fathers 4 Justice Israel (now the Family First Party) and child psychologists who documented that the Ra'anana Child Welfare department and other local child welfare departments throughout Israel and not national government were responsible for providing decisions to Israel family courts against divorced fathers solely based on gender," said Family First Israel director Joel Leyden.

"Hofri made a classic move of avoiding action and stated that he would look into it. That was over two years ago and nothing has changed. The majority of politicians in Israel do not know the sad facts of the severe and adverse effects of divorce on children which have a profound effect on over fifty percent of the population, on our society, our culture and our emotional and financial well being."

Child psychologists have labeled the Ra'anana Child Welfare department as unresponsive, dysfunctional and as a "sick" organization operating under Mayor Hofri. Joel Leyden, who created the Family First Party had been a write in candidate for mayor of Ra'anana, until he threw his support behind Meli Polishuk in the past week.

Polishuk (Polishook) has three university degrees and is a licensed attorney. She has served in the Israel Knesset heading and participating in several committees including education, finance, science and the environment. Polishuk has attracted all segments of the Ra'anana population, from secular to Reform, Conservative and Orthodox Jews in her attempt to defuse tensions among the various Jewish religious groups and her concern for Ra'anana city budget and environment.

Polishuk, who was born in Ra'anana, has been endorsed by the Green Party of Israel, Rabbi (MK) Michael Melchior of Meimad, the Father's and Children Rights Family First Party and the Senior Citizens (Gil) Party of Israel.

"When those who oppose Hofri (Hofree) in Ra'anana City Council, he asks his attorney if they have the right to speak," says one city council member. "This is not democracy, it is government through intimidation and the voters will no longer tolerate it."

"In the last Ra'anana city council meeting the only person who dared to challenge Hofri and provided substantial and critical financial data was Leah Halperin. Halperin is responsible for overseeing the Ra'anana city government and is listed as the number two member in Meli Polishuk election team," said Orit Agami, media and strategic advisor to the Polishuk campaign. "We are all hoping to secure cleaner, more honest and transparent city and national leaders and we will get there."

In Tel Aviv, Ron Huldai, the incumbent mayor and a former Israel Defense Forces fighter pilot, was first elected mayor of Tel Aviv in 1998, and was re-elected in 2003. Huldai is facing Dov Henin, an MK with the communist Hadash Party, which prides itself on supporting those who refuse to serve in the IDF.

Huldai inherited a crowded Tel Aviv with a run-down infrastructure, negative migration and an annual budget deficit of 180 million sheckels. Ten years later, Tel Aviv now has an annual budget surplus of NIS 20 million despite having the highest per-capita expenditure rate in the country. Huldai is said to be an easy favorite for re-election.

In Jerusalem, Arkady Gaydamak, the colorful Jewish-Russian billionaire, is going against the extreme ultra-Orthodox haredim. Gaydamak, who was born in Moscow and is also a French citizen who was awarded the Order of the Legion of Honor Gaydamak has donated to many Israel organizations including Magen David Adom, Hatzolah and many others.

Gaydamak also donated $10 million to the Jewish Agency for Israel.

During the 2006 Israel - Lebanon war, Gaydamak created a tent city on the beach of Nitzanim, that hosted thousands of families who fled the rocket hit Israel North Gaydamak's contributions totaled over $15 million (about $500,000 a day) and earned him an abundance of respect among many Israelis.

In November 2006, he funded a one-week long vacation in Eilat for hundreds of Sderot residents, who have been under constant Palestinian terror rocket attacks for the past seven years.

Meir Porush, who has the blessings of many Rabbis in Jerusalem, and is right-wing software professional and Jerusalem city councilman, challenges Gaydamak. Gaydamak, who owns the Jerusalem Beitar football team, in return has reached out to the large Israel Arab vote. Gaydamak's advisers recently met with Walid Dajani, a hotel manager from a prominent Old City family.

"I said I would give Gaydamak the balcony of my hotel to speak to us Arabs, but only if he came out against Israel's annexation of East Jerusalem. His advisers never came back," said Dajani. Two days before the election, Gaydamak offered to halt the demolition of Arab houses in East Jerusalem.

Gaydamak, much like Michael Cherney (Chernoy) another Israel Russia billionaire who created the Cherney Foundation and the Jerusalem Summit, are both sincerely concerned for Israel terror victims. Gaydamak is now playing both sides of the fence. This is something that Gaydamak is professionally used to and has cleverly won at this game before securing him millions of dollars.

Many believe that Gaydamak will now secure thousands of votes going after both secular Jews and Israel Arabs in Jerusalem. Many Right wing Jews will still cast their votes for Gaydamak, remembering the security and comfort that he provided them and their families during the Lebanon war. And many respect that when it comes to governing the Holy City, Gaydamak cannot be bought.

Regardless of which political party you may support, the Israel News Agency urges you to confirm that your voting address with the Israel Ministry of Interior is correct before election day, to get the facts about those you wish to support and then exercise your democratic right to vote.

 

The above news content was edited and SEO optimized in London for the Internet by Monique Lester for the Leyden Communications Group.

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