President’s signature Andrzej Duda was placed under legislation on Monday establishing a commission to investigate Russian influence on power in Poland between 2007 and 2022. The new body is the idea of PiS, and the people elected by it will sit on it parliamentary majority.
Opposition politicians, including KO, PSL, Left and Polish 2050are opposed to the creation of the commission. They allege that it violates the constitutionand the goal of PiS is preventing some politicians from running in elections, because it will be within its competence to issue a ban on holding public office for 10 years. It is sometimes called “lex tusk”.
Representatives of the ruling camp defend their actions. – (Signing the bill) it’s very much good decision by President Andrzej Dudawhich is part of the series of actions we take to increase transparency in our public life – assured the PiS spokesman in an interview with Interia Rafal Bochenek.
Opposition to the president’s move also came from the scientific community. Rector of CUE prof. Stanislaw Mazur wrote to him open letter. In it, he stated that “with the greatest respect for the citizens of our country” and the Polish scientific community, he must inform about his resignation from the Council for Higher Education, Science and Innovation, which was appointed by Andrzej Duda.
“In my opinion, the signing by the President of the Act on the State Commission for the Study of Russian Influences on the Internal Security of the Republic of Poland in 2007-2022 is a decision with great and difficult to predict consequences for democracy in Poland.
In his opinion, the regulations, which will come into force with the approval of the president, have “undeniable legal defects“, and the head of the university cannot remain passive towards their introduction also because of “anti-democratic nature of the law“.
As added by Prof. Mazur, decision about leaving the Council “with great regret.” “But I firmly believe that a trial cannot be accepted degradation of the legal order in Poland and the key mechanisms of a modern state based on the rule of law solid foundations made up of stable state institutions. In my opinion, this one the law defies this logic– summed up the rector of CUE.
The Council for Higher Education, Science and Innovation was established in November last year. It consists of 24 people, most of whom are professors and doctors from various Polish universities.
He guides her prof. Artur Hugo ŚwiergielAmong the tasks of the council are preparation of opinions and expert opinions for the president“identifying current problems in the field of higher education, science and innovation” and reviewing and analyzing “legal solutions as well as developing assumptions and draft presidential legislative initiatives regarding higher education, science and innovation”.
