MOSCOW (Sputnik), Svetlana Alexandrova – On Tuesday, Zeev Elkin and another Likud member of the Knesset met with Shas's party leader Aryeh Deri, who announced during the election campaign that he hoped to serve as Minister of Interior.
"There is no legal problem in his appointment to one of the ministerial posts," a lawmaker and chairman of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Zeev Elkin, told Sputnik adding that from a moral standpoint "Deri paid his duties [serving time in prison] and started his life with a clean slate."
Earlier this week, Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid, using his Facebook page, sent a message to Prime Minister Netanyahu opposing the appointment of Aryeh Deri as Minister of Interior, since the post involves responsibility for the Israeli "public coffer."
Lapid copied an excerpt from Deri's conviction, where the court outlines the severity of his bribery conviction. The Yesh Atid leader also stressed that it was not a once-off incident but that Deri's entire political career was built on bribery.
This political scandal has erupted as incumbent Prime Minister Netanyahu is set to receive a mandate on Wednesday to form his forth government, once President of Israel Reuven Rivlin receives the official results of the March 17 elections from the head of the central election committee on Wednesday night.
