'TOV' in Beit Shemesh left coalition • "The mayor, as usual, misled us"

Almost three years after entering the municipal coalition faction, the 'TOV' party in Beit Shemesh withdraws from the coalition.

Eli Friedman, chairman of the parliamentary group and its only member, sent last night (Tuesday) a letter to the mayor, Moshe Abutbul, where he announces that the party in which he is a member has to withdraw. "We were there out of a desire to serve the public, not the establishment."

In a conversation with Behadrey Haredim, Friedman tries to explain the main reasons for withdrawal: "We have engraved on our flag two main themes - education and improving the city's appearance. 10 months ago we expressed our will to leave the coalition, the mayor held negotiations with us, but as usual, he misled us ".

According to him, "The requirements were clear, especially in the area of improving the city's appearance and education."

Friedman argues that boys and girls are sitting at home without a regular place to study. "The mayor is not willing to put pressure on educational institutions to solve these problems. We have long called for a committee of rabbis agreed on everyone, but that did not happen."

In conclusion he says: "We can not stand idly by while they spit on us and tell the public: it's raining."

The Beit Shemesh municipality said in response to Behadrey Haredim: The Mayor regrets the resignation of Mr. Friedman from the coalition, although the urban coalition is broad and stable, and 15 out of 19 members are in the coalition. But some of the things in Mr. Friedman's letter are incorrect, to say the least, since by the mayor's operations many things were achieved for the voters of the TOV movement and their institutions, especially in the last year, Eli Friedman is well familiar with this long list.

The Mayor understands that we are now entering an era of elections in the Knesset and the authorities and therefore this is a step requested for this time in the atmosphere of the elections, but Mr. Friedman's letter does not reflect the opinion of the members of the TOV party, and one of the signatories on the letter, Rabbi Yitzhak Elon has already approached the mayor and denied the contents of the letter and the decision which is contrary to his opinion, and which was signed in his name without his knowledge, something serious in itself.

Nevertheless Mayor Moshe Abutbul is calling TOV back to the coalition to work together because the challenges are many and only in a stable coalition can one move things and help the residents. Beit Shemesh Municipality faces many constraints, on the one hand with the requirement to add more workers in particular areas of cleanliness and improving the city's appearance as a result of the expansion of the city, and on the other hand there is the consideration of the mayor not to increases the Arnona (property tax) rate to finance the cost of employing additional workers , while in the middle, the Mayor is formulating a program together with the deputy of the department for improving the city's appearance to deal with cleaning neighborhoods inhabited by thousands of children, ken yirbu.

In addition, since the beginning of the mayor's term of office, about 15 parks for games were built for the welfare of the residents in the new neighborhoods, and millions of shekels were invested in renovating and upgrading of the veteran haredi suburbs, and the municipality has recently started another huge project to upgrade the 'Mimizrach Shemesh' neighborhood with an investment of 7 million shekels.

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!