He asserted that he was calling for action in line with the Constitution and applicable regulations, noting a blatant breach of norms that was evident to all. President Andrzej Duda spoke at a press conference after meeting with Donald Tusk to express these concerns and stress the need for lawful conduct.
READ MORE: President Duda after talks with Tusk: Bodnar must step back from the path of lawlessness he has entered and stop these pathetic actions
Gross violation of the law
The handling of the public media emerged as a central issue in discussions between President Andrzej Duda and former Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Duda reiterated his call for actions that strictly follow constitutional provisions and current regulations, highlighting a clear violation of standards. He pointed to actions taken by Minister Sienkiewicz, based on a Sejm resolution that did not carry general applicability, which allegedly targeted public media bodies in contravention of the law and the Constitution. The registration court reportedly had no alternative but to refuse the registration on those grounds.
– Duda emphasized that the breach of the law was evident. He conveyed to the Prime Minister that there were avenues for formulating actions and cooperation, and he remained open to dialogue and possible changes to the law.
– The president stated.
An attack by Tusk’s team on the public media
On December 19, the Sejm adopted a resolution supporting the restoration of the rule of law and the impartiality and reliability of the public media and the Polish Press Agency, urging the Ministry of Finance to take corrective measures. The following day, the Ministry of Culture announced that Minister Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz, acting on behalf of the ministry’s property rights and under the Commercial Code, withdrew an agreement deemed illegal. On December 19, the current chairmen of the boards of Telewizja Polska SA, Polish Radio SA, and the Polish Press Agency SA, along with the Supervisory Board, spoke out. The ministry later appointed new supervisory boards for those entities and reset senior management accordingly.
On December 23, President Duda announced a veto of the budget law proposed by the new government, which included funding for public media amounting to PLN 3 billion for the upcoming year. He justified the veto by citing a gross violation of the constitution and the principles of a democratic constitutional state within the public media system.
Following the veto, the head of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage decided to liquidate TVP, Polskie Radio, and PAP on December 27, with a similar decision on December 29 regarding 17 regional Radio channels. January 9 marked a decision by the Registry Court to reject a request to alter TVP data in the National Court Register. An unauthorized body reportedly made appointments to the supervisory board and board of directors, as noted by Registrar Tomasz Kosub.
– This situation prompted further discussions about the authority and legality of actions within the public media sector. The discussions highlighted concerns about authorization and governance in a state-backed media landscape.
READ ALSO:
– National Broadcasting Council Resolution: There is no authorization to liquidate the public media! These are apparent activities, unknown to the law and intended to circumvent the law
— Colonel Sienkiewicz’s steamroller moves on! The Ministry of Culture and National Heritage is closing even more local Polish radio stations. This time Łódź and Kraków
– A Republican US senator criticizes changes in public media in Poland. It also shows the hypocrisy of the Biden administration
— The situation continues to draw international attention and debate on media independence in Poland.
– End of report
[Attribution: wPolityce]