Israel's Ayalon Highways Chairman Accused of Fabricating Resume

A new controversy surrounds the appointment of Idan David as chairman of Ayalon Highways, following an investigative report by Channel 12 journalist Yossi Mizrahi. The report alleges significant discrepancies between David's declared professional experience and his actual responsibilities. Documents and a resume submitted by David to the Appointments Committee, chaired by retired Judge Shulamit Dotan, reportedly contained inflated figures. David claimed to have managed budgets of approximately 1 billion shekels and supervised around 400 employees, while the investigation found he actually managed fewer than ten employees and budgets closer to 20 million shekels.

The investigation also questioned David's tenure as CFO of Migdalit between 2012 and 2016, as individuals named in verification documents denied signing them, and no offices or active employees from that period could be found. Furthermore, before managing large government budgets, David was involved with a private company that collapsed, leaving millions in debt. During his time as CEO of the Economic Company in Kiryat Motzkin, David claimed to have initiated grand real estate and hotel projects, which the investigation suggests were imaginary and never materialized.

Mizrahi confronted David with these findings in Ashkelon. The report suggests that the alleged misrepresentations could constitute criminal offenses during the vetting and appointment process. David, appointed as a confidant of Transportation Minister Miri Regev and supported by Minister of Companies Dudi Amsalem, joined Ayalon Highways, a government company managing annual budgets of about 3 billion shekels, without prior experience in the transportation sector. His background was primarily in municipal affairs and the private sector.

David's appointment has been marked by internal tension, including recent efforts to oust Ayalon Highways CEO Orly Stern, a respected figure in the infrastructure industry. Stern's term is set to end in March 2027, but David reportedly sought to establish a search committee for her replacement. These attempts were repeatedly blocked by the Government Companies Authority, which affirmed Stern's successful performance and stated there was no professional basis for her dismissal. Tensions escalated when a representative from the Authority accused David of attempting to hold board meetings without legal counsel and excluding oversight bodies, leading to an official warning letter.

In response to the report's findings, the Government Companies Authority announced it would conduct a thorough review of the data and documents submitted to the appointments committee. David's representative stated that his appointment followed all legal approval processes and called any claim of document forgery or misuse "extremely serious."