The State Comptroller’s Office this week issued its annual report assessing the successes and shortcomings of government and government-related bureaus.
Among the ministries and institutions that were sharply criticized in the nearly 1,000-page report were the army, the Religious Affairs Ministry and the authorities responsible for road safety.
As a result of its findings, the office passed on to the attorney general at least three instances of irregularities that may be subject to criminal proceedings.
Regarding the army, the report found that between 1992 and 1995, the number of reserve soldiers who failed to show up for duty rose by 54 percent, while desertions rose by 14 percent.
The report also noted a drop in the motivation of reserve combat soldiers to fulfill their military duties.
A spokesman for the Israel Defense Force said the IDF’s manpower division was already dealing with the issues before the report was published.
Reporting on the Religious Affairs Ministry, the State Comptroller’s Office questioned what it called political appointments of staff members.
Religious Affairs Minister Shimon Shetreet countered that the staff members in question had been hired to help with the reforms the office has implemented.
The Likud Knesset faction responded to the report by calling for Shetreet’s immediate resignation.
In last year’s report, the Comptroller’s Office was also critical of the Religious Affairs Ministry, saying that it had failed to allocate public funds, earmarked for religious learning institutions, in a fair manner.
Regarding road safety, the report called for a re-evaluation of the role of the National Council for Prevention of Road Accidents, noting that its activities have dropped in recent years, while road casualties have risen.
The report also criticized police for issuing fewer tickets.
One-third of the country’s new roads are of substandard quality and will only last two to five years, as opposed to the expected 20 years, the report added.
Road safety is a troubling issue in Israel, where the number of fatalities from traffic accidents reaches new highs each year.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
