Today, during a meeting of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice, and Home Affairs (LIBE), an exchange of views took place with Michael McGrath, Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law, and Consumer Protection, as part of a structured dialogue. PiS MEP Mariusz Kamiński spoke during the discussion.
Mariusz Kamiński reported that presidential elections were held in Poland last Sunday, in which the democratic opposition candidate, Karol Nawrocki, emerged victorious.
“This happened despite a brutal campaign of hate and manipulation waged by the Tusk government,” he emphasized.
As the MEP stated, “what happened in Poland was, in essence, a referendum on the state of democracy in our country.” “I am proud that Polish citizens did not allow the danger of authoritarian rule to take hold,” Kamiński added, stating that “Poles have defended democracy.” The PiS MEP stated that the Tusk government had used the entire state apparatus in this campaign—from the secret services and the prosecutor’s office to the public media, which had become a propaganda mouthpiece for the ruling camp’s candidate.
He also pointed out that there had been illegal foreign funding of the campaign for the ruling party’s candidate.
“Foreign interference in the Polish elections was noted not only by U.S. congressmen but is also documented in the reports of OSCE and Council of Europe observers, and must be held accountable,” the PiS politician emphasized.
Referring to Commissioner McGrath’s recent visit to Warsaw, Mariusz Kamiński asked, “What is his position on the violations of the rule of law and the failure to uphold democratic standards by Tusk’s team, which were so clearly evident during the presidential campaign?”
As he stated, the EU’s continued actions prove that “the EU does not see these problems and is pursuing a policy of turning a blind eye.” “I ask for a clear statement. You are responsible for this important aspect of upholding the rule of law,” he urged.
In his response, Commissioner McGrath stated that the European Commission lacks the tools to interfere in elections (it should be recalled that following pressure from, among others, Mariusz Kamiński, the European Commission and Donald Tusk’s government withdrew from organizing a roundtable on the presidential election). “The Polish people have spoken. I congratulate the winner of the election. We look forward to working with Poland’s new president,” said the Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, and the Rule of Law.
