The members of the opposition left the city council hall in anger while uttering phrases such as "shame and disgrace" - "shame on you" and more after the agenda proposal regarding the removal of asbestos panels from houses in the Shaar Aliya neighborhood was removed.
Asbestos panels are crumbling on Saadia Street in the Shaar Aliya neighborhood
For many years, the residents of the Shaar Aliya neighborhood have been suffering from a serious environmental hazard that endangers the residents' health. These are crumbling asbestos panels that cover 21 buildings in the neighborhood, where 400 families live. The residents turned to the council members Tali Meshulam Itah, Einat Kalish Rotem and Boaz Gur and asked for their help in solving the problem. The members of the council put forward a proposal for an agenda on the subject, but the proposal was removed after 12 members voted against and only 5 voted in favor.
Abandoned in anger: Borovsky and Golan
The residents who contacted Shulom, Kalish and Gur, most of whom are new immigrants who purchased the public housing from the state, said that the municipality is sending them letters threatening fines and criminal proceedings if they do not remove the asbestos panels within 30 days. If this is not enough, the municipality explains in the letters that it acts by virtue of the law, although according to the law it is forbidden to remove the asbestos non-professionally because the material is easily released, and that a team of experts is needed to carry out the removal and removal of asbestos approved by the Ministry of Environmental Protection. Otherwise, the removal will be considered Breaking the Law.
Meshulam stated that apparently the municipality did not take into account when writing the letter, the financial capital needed to clear the hazard that is not in the pockets of the tenants who purchased their home. She also stated that a year ago it was agreed between all the responsible bodies: Shekmona, Amidar, the Adam Teva and Din association and the Ministry of Environmental Protection, that the Haifa municipality would calculate the cost for each resident for the removal of asbestos and re-covering while assisting a community worker and a welfare worker.
Meshulam asked the city council to approve the proposal in order to promote the issue and handle the removal of the asbestos panels immediately. The majority voted against and the proposal was removed, which infuriated opposition members Meshulam, Kalish, Hanan, Borovsky, and Sharit who claimed and claim all the time that the municipality does not work for the residents.