The chairman of the Labor and Welfare Committee, MK Israel Eichler, a representative of the Belza faction, is on his way to taking office as Minister of Construction and Housing on Monday.
Here are some points:
• After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided that Eichler would be appointed minister to replace Yitzhak Goldknopf, who resigned from the government on the orders of the Rebbe of Gur in protest at the failure to advance a draft law - the appointment was approved by government ministers by telephone yesterday.
• Shas ministers did not vote, as they were instructed not to participate (gratitude for the Gur-Vizhnitz delegate's support for Shas candidate El-Ad? Possibly). But there was a large majority even without them - 26 ministers voted in favor.
• After the approval, Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fox sent a letter to Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana: "The government wishes to bring the decision on the appointment of Eichler as Minister of Housing for approval by the Knesset.".
• The person who pressured Netanyahu's office to have Eichler accept the position was Minister Meir Porush, since he is next in line on the Agudat Yisrael list. The transfer of the portfolio is also related to tensions and battles between the Shlomi Emunim-Belza axis and the Gur-Wiznitz axis, within Agudat Yisrael.
• Along with approving the appointment, Eichler delivered a letter to Netanyahu in which he pledged that he would resign from his position if Goldknopf wanted to return to the position.
The Haredi dailies "Hamodia" - a Gur publication, and "Yated Ne'eman" - a Degel publication did not publish the new appointment.
In "Hambeshar," the newspaper of the Shlomi Emunim faction, a news item was of course published, but Eichler's commitment to return the file if Goldknopf asked to return was omitted.
• The appointment will take effect on Monday, after the vote in the Knesset. Eichler will be sworn in, to the delight of his family, Belza Hasidism, Shlomi Emunim and most of the Lithuanian factions.
But has peace come to the United Torah Judaism party? Absolutely not.
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