Donald Tusk is probably facing the biggest political demotion in decades. As head of the European Council in 2014-2019 and then head of the European People’s Party, he boasted high salaries, expensive alcoholic drinks and attendance at the most important salons in the world. If he does not win against the United Right in these parliamentary elections, the PO leader will fall spectacularly and be remembered as the big loser of Polish politics.
Revenue
At the end of his term at the head of the EU, he was earning PLN 140,000 a month, and now the salary of a Polish MP is less than PLN 13,000. zloty, although there is also a diet of about 4 thousand. zloty. This is almost 10 times less than at the top of power in Brussels and two times less than Donald Tusk’s pension, which – including contributions as a Polish and EU official – is about PLN 30,000. PLN. So you can say that retired Tusk goes to Wiejskastraat to earn some extra money. However, let’s not forget that in Poland there are people who consider the head of the PO a statesman and an idealist (after all, in Częstochowa he heard words that Poles are harsh and unfair to him), so maybe he will not go there for money.
salons
However, in his diary “Sincerely”, Tusk made it clear that good alcohol and influential names around him are important to him. Every now and then he bragged in the pages of this book about a chat with Mark Rutte, and jokes with Angela Merkel, who would be charmed by how she sings Christmas carols. While Tusk’s expensive alcohol will still be available on opposition benches, who – except the German ambassador to Poland – will pat him on the back and tell how beautifully he sings, recites and coats?
Get off stage
Jeffrey Pfeffer in the book “Power” devotes a separate chapter to the process of giving up power, choosing the moment to let go, so as not to end your career with a spectacular flop and disgrace for the rest of your life. Tusk may not have read Pfeffer, or perhaps he firmly believes that by biting right and left and throwing lies around, he will defeat Jarosław Kaczyński’s party. However, he must have a total disaster scenario in his head as he once blurted out on TVN that sitting in the parliamentary pews is “such a ghostly thought” for him and that “he’s going to have to run for office”.
Poland is a ruthless nation, often separating heroes from traitors with a thick line, constantly learning the difficult art of letting go of guilt, but in this election they can prove very stubborn and humiliate their former prime minister by opposing him for all four years.
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Source: wPolityce
Emma Matthew is a political analyst for “Social Bites”. With a keen understanding of the inner workings of government and a passion for politics, she provides insightful and informative coverage of the latest political developments.