“President Andrzej Duda pardoned Mariusz Kamiński and Maciej Wąsik and this pardon is effective; You cannot do the same act twice, and no one has the right to judge the effectiveness of the president’s prerogative,” Grażyna Ignaczak-Bandych, head of the President’s Chancellery, said today on Polsat News.
The former head of the CBA and the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administrative Affairs, Mariusz Kamiński, and his former deputy, Maciej Wąsik, were sentenced to two years in prison in connection with the so-called land scandal. On December 21, the Marshal of the Sejm, Szymon Hołownia, announced the expiry of their parliamentary mandate.
Grażyna Ignaczak-Bandych was asked today on Polsat News whether the president will pardon Kamiński and Wąsik a second time.
Ignaczak-Bandych: No one has the right to judge the effectiveness of the president’s prerogative
The president has granted a pardon and this pardon is effective. (…) You cannot do the same action twice. They will be pardoned and we all know it. No one has the right to judge the effectiveness of the president’s prerogative
– said the presidential minister. In 2015, President Andrzej Duda applied an act of clemency to Kamiński and Wąsik.
The head of the KPRP emphasized that she would support both Kamiński and Wąsik and their families “if what is expected to happen.”
The case of Kamiński and Wąsik
The case of the former heads of the CBA has a history of almost ten years. In March 2015, the Warsaw-Śródmieście District Court sentenced the former heads of the CBA, Mariusz Kamiński and Maciej Wąsik, at first instance to 3 years in prison, including: for exceeding the powers and illegal operational activities of the CBA during the “land scandal ” in 2007. Two other former members of the CBA board were sentenced to 2.5 years in prison. Kamiński then said that the verdict “violates the fundamental sense of justice, is bizarre, highly unjust and incomprehensible.” In 2015, President Andrzej Duda pardoned Kamiński and Wąsik, who were subsequently legally convicted.
The case was brought up again after more than eight years in connection with the Supreme Court’s ruling in June. The Supreme Court of the Criminal Chamber, following cassation appeals filed by assistant prosecutors, annulled the termination of the case of the former heads of the CBA, which was filed by the District Court in Warsaw in March 2016 in connection with the pardon law applied by the CBA. president to the former heads of the CBA who had not been legally convicted, and referred the matter to the Supreme Court for further investigation.
The Chairman: there are no reasons to declare that the mandate has expired
President Andrzej Duda had previously indicated in a letter to the Speaker of the Sejm that as a result of the application of the Law of Pardon in 2015 to Kamiński and Wąsik, who were subsequently unlawfully convicted by the Court of First Instance, there were no grounds for the expiry of their mandate.
A few days ago, Prime Minister Donald Tusk commented on the issue.
President Andrzej Duda and I have different views on the actions of M. Wąsik and M. Kamiński in the past and when they took power for the second time; in his view they are innocent and deserve pardon; If he thinks so, he should pardon them now
– said the head of the government.
What’s next for the former heads of the CBA?
Radio Zet reported on December 27 that the convicts would not go to prison until mid-January.
On Wednesday, Kamiński and Wąsik’s lawyer filed a request to halt the enforcement proceedings regarding the detention of the former ministers. The application has fourteen days to be processed. As a result, the convicts will not be placed in prison until the first half of January
– Radio Zet reported.
It also reported that in the case of two PiS politicians and two other employees of the CBA, also convicted of abuse in the land scandal, the defense lawyer filed a motion to halt the proceedings related to their imprisonment due to their pardoned by the president in 2015. . The application will be processed within 14 days.
If the court were to rule that PiS politicians would be sent to prison, (…) this would be a remand center or a prison closest to their place of residence. In the case of MPs Kamiński and Wąsik, it could be a detention center in Warsaw’s Białołęka district
– Radio Zet reported.
READ ALSO:
– Mariusz Kamiński: No matter what my fate will be, I will act publicly until the end, even from prison
– Hołownia manifestation? During the committee meeting, attempts were made to transfer decisions to expire their mandates to Kamiński and Wąsik
– The mysterious words of Wąsik, Kamiński and Tusk. Is this about Sławomir Nowak? Could it be that the new government is taking revenge for this case?
PAP/rdm
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.