The Polish president, Andrzej Duda, announced he would submit a draft amendment to the law establishing the commission tasked with investigating Russian influence. The move surprised Marek Ast, a PiS deputy, who noted that the president’s decision to refer the draft to the Constitutional Tribunal before the amendments reached the Sejm deviated from the expected sequence. Ast stressed that the plan was to wait for the Tribunal’s ruling on the constitutionality of the law before any presidential changes were proposed, but the course of events took a different path.
On April 14, the Sejm approved a statute creating a commission to examine Russian influence on Poland’s internal security from 2007 to 2022. The initiative originated with PiS lawmakers, who argued for a formal body to investigate potential security and political risks tied to Moscow’s actions. Shortly after, President Duda signed the law and announced that he would submit it to the Constitutional Tribunal for review. The law was published in the Journal of Laws on the following day and became effective the next day, marking the start of the commission’s potential work.
Before noon on the following Friday, the president indicated that he was preparing an amendment to the law governing the Committee for the Investigation of Russian Influence. He urged parliament to approve the proposed changes quickly. The bill reached the Sejm on Friday evening, signaling a new phase in the legislative process.
PiS MP surprised
During Friday’s press briefing, Marek Ast, who chairs the parliamentary justice committee, faced questions about the presidential initiative. He acknowledged the surprise, explaining that the president’s decision to challenge the law’s provisions with the Constitutional Tribunal altered the anticipated sequence. Ast said he expected the Tribunal to deliver its decision first and, if required, the president would propose amendments after that ruling. Instead, the president moved ahead with the amendment process, which caught some lawmakers off guard.
When asked whether deputies would be elected to the committee, Ast explained that the law provides that parliamentary clubs have 14 days from the law’s entry into force to submit candidacies. After this period, the Sejm could proceed with elections. He added that he shares the president’s view that the committee should be populated primarily by experts rather than lawmakers. The focus, Ast noted, is expertise that can rigorously assess Russian influence and its impact on public institutions.
On April 14, the Sejm had passed the measure establishing the commission to investigate Russian influence on Poland’s internal security for the years 2007–2022. PiS deputies had introduced the bill, while on May 11 the Senate rejected the proposal. A week later, the Sejm voted against the Senate’s rejection. Following that sequence, the president announced that he had signed the law and would refer it to the Constitutional Tribunal for further review. The law’s publication in the Journal of Laws occurred the following Tuesday, with the law taking effect on Wednesday.
The purpose of the commission
The law assigns the commission a broad mandate to analyze official activities, information sharing with third parties, and the influence exerted on board decisions. Its remit includes examining the creation, duplication, and dissemination of information that could affect public or corporate decisions, as well as the handling of contracts and the use of public funds. The measures the committee could implement include revoking administrative decisions affected by Russian influence, imposing up to a 10-year ban on handling functions related to the management of public funds, and restricting or revoking security clearances for up to a decade. The aim is to provide a formal mechanism to safeguard the integrity of public administration and to deter improper conduct enabled by foreign influence.
President Duda announced plans for a change to the law’s framework last Friday, proposing a composition that prioritizes experts on the committee and shifting jurisdiction for appeals toward the Court of Appeal in Warsaw, with the possibility of transferring the case to a different Court of Appeal depending on residence. The president also suggested replacing remedial measures with a finding by the commission that a person cannot reliably perform duties in the public interest.
In his Friday statement, President Duda reaffirmed his strong support for the law investigating Russian influence and expressed complete conviction in the law’s underlying purpose and necessity.
gah/PAP