“The Supreme Court is violating the president’s prerogatives, usurping power only to be overpowered and ignoring the decision of the Constitutional Tribunal,” Krzysztof Szczucki, president of RCL, told PAP, commenting on the Supreme Court’s ruling, which was due on Tuesday. the closure of the case of Mariusz Kamiński and other former heads of the CBA.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court annulled the drop of the case of Mariusz Kamiński and other former heads of the CBA, convicted at first instance and pardoned by President Andrzej Duda; the case was referred back to court for re-examination.
Reaction of the chairman of the RCL to the ruling of the Supreme Court
In an interview with PAP, the chairman of the Government Legislative Center negatively assessed the Supreme Court’s decision.
I believe that the Court violates Mr President’s prerogatives and the principle that they are not subject to any scrutiny, including judicial review.
– he said.
This is what characterizes the prerogative that the president has the exclusive authority to apply it here, it is neither countersigned nor controlled by other state organs.
Szczucki recalled.
Usurpations of the Supreme Court
This is in line with the principle of separation of powers and balancing of powers. This principle cannot be taken to mean that the courts have become superpowers and the Supreme Court usurps that power to be superpowers.
– added.
The chairman of the RCL further states that “the Supreme Court has disregarded the ruling of the Constitutional Tribunal, which was handed down last Friday, which clearly showed that only the president has power or is able or willing to use his prerogative. “
This is a consistent sequence of work of the Supreme Court, where it strives at all costs to dot the i’s and cross the t’s, to have the last word in all decision-making processes that take place, and according to the Constitution the Court has no authority to do so
emphasized Szczucki.
Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland: “The ruling of the Supreme Court is astonishing”
Presidential Minister Małgorzata Paprocka told PAP Tuesday’s ruling by the Supreme Court “is astonishing”.
It was not only in absolute contradiction to the legal status confirmed by three decisions of the Constitutional Tribunal
she stressed. As she added, using an act of grace is the prerogative of the president.
This is a personal right, which directly means that no court has the right to control the exercise of the prerogative. This has been confirmed by (…) judgments of the Constitutional Tribunal
noted the minister.
The case of Kamiński and Wąsik
In March 2015, the Warsaw-Śródmieście Court of First Instance convicted the former head of the CBA Mariusz Kamiński (currently Head of the Ministry of Interior and Administration) and Maciej Wąsik (then Kamiński’s deputy in the CBA; currently deputy head of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration) to 3 years imprisonment, ia for exceeding authority and unlawful management of the CBA during the “country scandal” in 2007. Two other former members of the executive board of the CBA were sentenced to prison terms after 2.5 years.
In November 2015, before the District Court in Warsaw examined their appeals, President Andrzej Duda pardoned all four unlawfully convicted persons. In March 2016, the SO overturned the SR’s verdict and, given the President’s clemency, legally discontinued the case. The assistant public prosecutors have lodged an appeal in cassation with the Supreme Court against this judgment of the Supreme Court. The case was then suspended for a long time at the Supreme Court, partly due to a dispute of jurisdiction brought before the Constitutional Tribunal by the Marshal of the Sejm. In 2017, the Supreme Court also ruled on the issue of the right of pardon.
Last Friday, the verdict in this case and the power dispute between the Supreme Court and the president was made by the Constitutional Tribunal. It ruled that the right to a pardon is an exclusive and unverifiable competence of the President of the Republic of Poland, which has final legal effect. The Tribunal added that the Supreme Court has no power to review the president’s exercise of leniency law.
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rm/PAP
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.