The head of Israel's special appointments committee said on Sunday the panel could make a decision as early as this week on whether to approve Citigroup Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer's nomination as central bank governor. Fischer, a former No 2 at the International Monetary Fund, arrived in Israel over the weekend, a week after he was nominated by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to replace David Klein, whose five-year term ended on Sunday.
"We won't delay it for long," said Gabriel Bach, who with the other two members of his so-called Bach Committee, met for long sessions on Sunday with Fischer, Sharon, Netanyahu, Klein and the director generals of the finance ministry and prime minister's office.
A decision could be made this week on the nomination, he told Reuters after the panel ended its session. "We have to think about it and sleep on it before coming to an agreement."
A spokesman for the committee said a decision on Fischer could be taken in the next two or three days.
Bach, whose committee oversees the appointment of senior civil servants, said his panel had asked why Fischer would want to leave his lofty post at Citigroup for a much lower paying civil service job in Israel, whether Fischer would need to give up his US citizenship if he got the job and why an Israeli citizen was not chosen for the post.