Poland’s Government Formation and the Russian Influence Inquiry

The commission investigating Russian influence in Poland’s security sphere has the right to share its views. President Andrzej Duda will not base any decisions on it; if Prime Minister Donald Tusk gains an absolute majority, he will be sworn in immediately, according to Łukasz Rzepecki, an adviser to the Polish president, speaking on Radio Zet.

READ ALSO: Marzena Nykiel asks whether Tusk as prime minister could threaten state security. This is a matter for the Sejm, not the president. The Constitution of the Republic of Poland makes clear that at this stage it is parliamentarians who choose the prime minister.

On Wednesday the Sejm dismissed eight members of the State Commission for investigating Russian influence on Poland’s internal security during 2007-2022. Earlier in the day, the commission presented a partial report covering three months of work and urged that Donald Tusk, Jacek Cichocki, Bogdan Klich, Tomasz Siemoniak and Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz not be entrusted with public positions linked to key security duties, citing their recognition by the Russian FSB as partners during 2010-2014.

“This is the committee’s recommendation.”

Presidential adviser Łukasz Rzepecki noted on Radio Zet that the committee’s opinion does not automatically reflect the president’s stance on the matter.

This is the committee’s opinion. The commission had the right to express such an opinion, it stated. The president will not consider it as a second step in the process of forming the government, according to PAP.

– said Rzepecki.

When asked whether the Civic Coalition, Trzecia Droga, and Left would present a candidate for prime minister to Andrzej Duda, or whether the president would appoint Donald Tusk, Rzepecki replied: “Yes.”

If Prime Minister Donald Tusk secures an absolute majority in the second constitutional step, he would be sworn in by President Duda without delay, according to the adviser.

– stated the presidential adviser.

Paprocka: This is a parliamentary issue

In the program Woronicza 17 on TVP Info, State Secretary Małgorzata Paprocka of KPRP was asked whether the president, given the advice from the Verification Committee, should entrust Donald Tusk with forming the government.

Paprocka recalled that when Andrzej Duda decided to entrust the mission of forming a government to himself, he had explicitly stated that Donald Tusk was not his candidate for prime minister. This remark came in an interview with the weekly Sieci and the website wPolityce.pl. The KPRP state secretary noted that the second constitutional step presents a completely different scenario.

There is a clearly political dimension to this report and its political weight,

– Paprocka commented.

As she explained, the committee members based their positions on documents whose reliability is not questioned by anyone, including the individuals named in the report.

I do not recall any statement from Donald Tusk or others mentioned in the report claiming the documents are forged. Even this partial report has clearly touched voters’ political and journalistic awareness,

– she assessed.

If the second constitutional step proceeds and if Mateusz Morawiecki does not receive a confidence vote, the question of whether those individuals should hold the most important state positions becomes a matter for the parliamentary majority. Will they vote for these individuals while aware of the documents?

– said Małgorzata Paprocka.

Who will ultimately form the government?

On Wednesday the Sejm Speaker announced that he would explain to Prime Minister Morawiecki the plan for December 11 and, at 3 p.m., a confidence vote in the government should take place. He then indicated a pause to await the nomination of candidates for the premiership in the second constitutional step.

A candidate for prime minister can be nominated by a group of at least 46 MPs. The Sejm approves the prime minister and the entire government by an absolute majority in the presence of at least half of the legal number of deputies. The president then appoints the government and takes an oath of office.

In the Sejm elections held on October 15, PiS won 194 seats, falling short of a majority of 231. KO obtained 157 seats, Trzecia Droga 65, New Left 26, and Konfederacja 18.

On November 10, coalition discussions were formally initiated by the Civic Platform leader Donald Tusk, the Polska 2050 leader Szymon Hołownia, the Polish People’s Party leader Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, and the New Left co-chairs Włodzimierz Tsazarzasty and Robert Biedroń. The coalition’s candidate for prime minister remains Donald Tusk.

READ ALSO: President Duda clears doubts: I will not continue and I will appoint the government in the so-called second constitutional step

aja/PAP, TVP Info

Source: wPolityce