The president of Sejm —the lower house of the Polish Parliament—accused Jaroslaw Kaczynskipresident of Law and Justice (PiS), of beating “the drum of Russian propaganda” for criticizing the erosion of political freedoms in Poland after the two parliamentarians pardoned by Duda had their deputy certificates withdrawn.
Szymon Hołownia -Mariscal del Sejm since November last year and leader of the socioliberal party Poland 2050, member of the Tusk electoral coalition— accused Kaczyński of collaborating with “Russian propaganda” and damaging Poland’s international image for its criticism of the state of democracy since the change of Government. Previously, the President of Law and Justice had criticized Hołownia for withdrawing the membership certificate of Mariusz Kamiński, former Minister of the Interior, and Maciej Wąsik, as well as for threatening to sanction PiS parliamentarians after on Wednesday Both politicians will try to attend the session in the lower house.
Kamiński and Wąsik were accused of abuse of power while heading the Anti-Corruption Office and convicted last December, shortly after the parliamentary elections, although they were granted a pardon by President Andrzej Duda.. «Of this authority, which constantly breaks the law»aseguró Kaczyński, “You can expect anything, even political assassinations.” The PiS leader threatened to denounce the Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, after the two imprisoned deputies were forced to eat after going on a hunger strike in protest against their situation: “I am convinced that this is Tusk’s personal decision”who – he assured – should be “considered personally responsible for the torture.”
Both politicians were arrested on January 9 while they were meeting with Andrzej Duda in the presidential palace. The Polish president – politically independent, but close to the ideas of PiS – had previously granted them a pardon, but the new government order led to his imprisonment, which ended after a second presidential pardon.
However, Tusk threatened Wąsik and Kamiński againensuring that, despite the presidential pardon, they could be sentenced again for his alleged involvement in the development of the Pegasus spy program in the Anti-Corruption Office.
The former Minister of the Interior assured that he is still a deputy and denounced ““illegal attempts to deprive parliamentarians of the ability to exercise their mandates”. Law and Justice – the first force in the parliamentary elections of October 2023 and the ruling party until that date – denounces that the country has suffered a setback in political freedom since the rise to power of Donald Tusk, who led a coalition catch-all in the elections.
In December, shortly after the formation of the coalition government, the police raided Polish public television and suspended the broadcast of the 24-hour news channel, TVP Info, just hours after the prime minister dismissed the top officials appointed in several state organs, such as TVP, Polish Radio, the PAP news agency or the Intelligence agency.
After these abuses, Kaczyński, who chairs the opposition party, encouraged the use «various methods» against the Tusk Government in the context of the emergency situation and the bankruptcy of the constitutional system that the country is suffering. Hołownia assured that he would “stand up to obstruction attempts” in the Sejm. The prime minister, a pro-European candidate brought to power after the alliance of most political parties opposed to PiS, then accused Kaczyński of encouraging a coup d’état.. Several of his allies ran to draw comparisons between the opposition leader and former United States President Donald Trump.
Hołownia himself denounced that the PiS parliamentarians wanted to “build a second Capitol in the Sejm». For his part, Donald Tusk assured that Kaczyński is “increasingly distant from reality” and that he maintains “dangerous tendencies.” “We do not have to carry out a coup d’état, because we won the elections and legally assumed power”replied the prime minister.
