The Labor Party leadership supported Premier Golda Meir last night in her criticism of the news media for casting “wild aspersions” on public figures mentioned in connection with a series of alleged scandals in government-owned companies. The party leaders echoed Mrs. Meir’s pledge that the allegations which are currently under investigation by official bodies would be pursued without favoritism. She sharply criticized the mass media for having published allegedly “wild charges and personal attacks on public office holders without foundation.”
Mrs. Meir was especially angry over charges against Justice Minister Yaacov Shimshon Shapiro and Finance Minister Pinhas Sapir. Shapiro has been accused in some quarters of delaying an investigation into the affairs of Netivei Neft, the government-owned company drilling oil in the Sinal. Sapir has been mentioned in testimony before the Knesset finance committee concerning the bankrupt Autocar Co. and Vered, the water resources development company. The government-owned firms have been charged with mismanagement, corruption and fraudulent bookkeeping. Mrs. Meir’s attack on the press included the Histadrut newspaper, Davar, which, she said, was “not different from any other paper.”
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