Radosław Sikorski attempted to make waves on social media with a fresh critique aimed at the government of Law and Justice. In response, a sharp rebuttal came from Szymon Szynkowski, known in political circles as Sęk.
The foreign minister spoke about his Davos trip during a forum gathering.
While heading to Davos, he noted the town of Rapperswil, remarking that the government in Warsaw had spent 100 million PLN on a collection headquarters there, a project he suggested did not represent prudent use of public funds. He framed the post as questioning the rationality of that expenditure.
— he wrote.
In his original post on the platform X, Sikorski referred to the Swiss city as “Rappersville.”
Sikorski’s misstep
Szymon Szynkowski, also referred to as Sęk and personally involved in the rescue of the Polish Museum in Rapperswil, offered a reply to Sikorski’s remarks.
The minister’s Davos route ran through Rapperswil, a city long associated with the history of Polish emigration and the cooperation between Poland and Switzerland. Yet in a rapid note, Sikorski misspelled the city name and the description of the museum, casting doubt on whether the preservation of the oldest Polish museum outside the country had been properly handled. He suggested that the museum, a century and a half old beacon of Polish culture, faced the threat of closing due to municipal plans to repurpose a historic castle in Rapperswil-Jona. The museum’s survival, he contends, was ensured only with a major effort by the state and local authorities at a decisive moment.
— the piece continues.
According to the account, the proponent government coalition in Warsaw contributed support, enabling the museum to acquire a dignified, renewed, yet historically significant headquarters in the Schwanen Hotel. This site, where the museum’s founding act was signed in 1870, and where many notable figures from the Polish diaspora were welcomed, also hosted commemorations such as the 100th anniversary of the May 3 Constitution in 1891. The museum’s improvement, it is argued, should be celebrated not only for its local significance but for its value in promoting Polish heritage abroad. The author suggests that Sikorski, if he took the time to engage more deeply with Rapperswil and the museum’s history, could help illuminate the story and potential of the new Schwanen Hotel headquarters.
— a PiS member writes.
Paweł Jabłoński from PiS also criticized Sikorski’s account.
HANDS ARE LOW… The Polish Museum in Rapperswil holds more than 150 years of history. Yet some observers claim that those in power fail to recognize the institution’s significance or even the city’s name. They argue that support from the ruling party funded efforts to preserve the museum, while detractors describe actions as a political move by the current government, labeling it as a tragedy for the country.
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