Accountant General Zelika: Governing Elite Corrupt 20:40 Jan 02, '07 / 12 Tevet 5767

(IsraelNN.com) Treasury Accountant General Yaron Zelika intensified his ongoing attack on the norms of government in Israel Tuesday, describing the governing elite as a hotbed of corruption. "While a select few who are 'close to the plate' and to the government revel in an ongoing corrupt celebration, social gaps widen and poverty grows," said Zelika in a session of the Knesset's State control Committee.

"This corruption causes demoralization," he added. "It injures the democratic spirit and the people's ability to believe that they are their own masters." Zelika's relations with Finance Minister Avraham Hirshzon are extremely tense. Zelika was appointed to his post by former Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.