Outgoing Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon (Likud) was interviewed by Israel Hayom and questioned on his opinion of the government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis.
“Even if there is a second wave of the coronavirus, there’s no way we can go back to the way we did things until now,” he said.
“They were the right steps to take at the time, but bear in mind that we sacrificed the economy on the altar of health. It’s not possible to shut down the economy again even if there is a second wave. It’s not just impossible; it’s dangerous.”
Kahlon rejected the notion that his opinion was not sought by the government and that he had not demonstrated leadership during the crisis.
“The only reason people are saying such things is because I wasn’t giving interviews the whole time,” he said. “It’s extremely frustrating to hear such things said, because of course I was there, I was present at all the meetings, I made decisions – in fact, no decision was made without my input. Without mentioning names, I will say that the media tends to apportion praise to ministers who make a lot of noise as if they’re getting things done, but people should realize that it’s not necessarily those who make the most noise who get the most work done.”
“I didn’t make media appearances because I was busy doing my job, making sure the economy didn’t shut down entirely, making sure that we didn’t reach a situation where we had three million unemployed, making sure that the grants we voted on were actually paid out. Effectiveness isn’t measured by the number of interviews a person grants. I have a lot of respect for the media, but it doesn’t see everything.”
Source: Arutz Sheva