Comic relief (courtesy of parliament)
After the success that the Rywingate Commission has evidently proven to be in the eyes of parliamentarians, all opposition parties are now calling for another commission to be set up in connection with the most recent scandal to have surfaced, that concerning the shady dealings surrounding the country's largest company, PKN Orlen.
A League of Polish Families (LPR) deputy, Robert Strąk, occupied the rostrum in the lower house of parliament for three hours last week, demanding that the speaker put the motion to the vote. Marek Borowski, who continues as speaker despite his resignation from the post after setting up Polish Social Democracy (SdPl), a splinter group from the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD), explained that Strąk's demand flew in the face of parliamentary procedures but proved unable to stop the occupation.
Occupying the roster has become something of a tradition in this parliament. The practice, pioneered by Andrzej Lepper's Samoobrona (Self-defense), has now been taken up by a rival populist party, the LPR, and some SLD deputies seem to be warming to the idea as well. Seeing the speaker's impotence in the face of Strąk's determination to paralyze proceedings, Joanna Senyszyn joined him at the roster, saying that as she is running for the same European Parliament constituency as the LPR deputy, she would like to emulate his campaign tactics. The next to scale the steps leading to the roster was another SLD member, Piotr Gadzinowski, whose declared intention was to wave his hand to "rabbit's friends and relations" who were watching TV.
It is nice to see deputies having fun. Clearly, Strąk's action provided a welcome break from their dreary jobs. It would be cruel to deny them a bit of a break. After all, they are only human. What is more, the occupation worked. The LPR got what it wanted and the vote on the new commission of inquiry was scheduled for the following Monday. It was all innocent fun and, in deputy Strąk's words, "it demonstrated the LPR's ability to defend the national interest" that was under threat from privatization enthusiasts.
But what of the fact that the case demonstrates that breaking the law pays? After all, Strąk displayed a fragrant disregard for the rules that govern parliamentary proceedings. Who would worry about that? It was Andrzej Lepper who set the example, and he has built his whole political career on consistently breaking the law and getting away with it. Apart from the short jail term he served in the mid-90s for his part in the beating up of a businessman, none of the many criminal sentences passed on him has been executed. It would be ridiculous to suggest that Strąk has undermined this parliament's authority. Any semblance of it was long gone before he decided to provide his moment of comic relief from the serious business of running the country.
For while last Wednesday's session of parliament turned into farce, the matter at hand was, in fact, quite serious. One backdrop against which to see the events is the recent political infighting within the parliamentary parties. Strąk's heroic defense of patriotic values came just hours after the defection of a group of far-right deputies from his party, which combines Catholic integrism with extreme nationalism. Interestingly, the splinter group finds the LPR too lenient in its fight against the Masonic conspiracy, whose most recent incarnation is the European Union. Senyszyn and Gadzinowski, on the other hand, are both known for their criticism of Leszek Miller's leadership style, yet neither joined Speaker Borowski's splinter group. So it was vital for all those concerned to get that precious TV exposure that could so easily have focused on the defectors.
Then there is the controversy over Orlen. The oil firm's chief shareholder is the State Treasury with 27 percent of the stock, but it is commonly believed that Jan Kulczyk, the richest man in the country, holds the controlling stake of six percent. The maths may be dodgy, but then so are many things about the company. Take the case of Andrzej Modrzejewski, a former CEO, who was arrested in a spectacular action involving commandos back in February 2002. According to Waldemar Kaczmarek, one of the leading SLD defectors and the treasury minister at the time, the arrest was politically inspired, with Prime Minister Leszek Miller openly asking the justice minister of the day to find an excuse for it in Kaczmarek's presence.
How noble of Kaczmarek to reveal such criminal proceedings in the government. Shame, though, that he did so only two years after the fact, when he had clear reasons to attack his former party and its beleaguered leader.
Earlier this month, Jan Waga of Kulczyk Holding replaced the State Treasury's appointee to Orlen's supervising board as its chairman. According to Treasury Minister Zbigniew Kaniewski, the change boosted the Treasury's representation on the board. Many beg to differ with the minister's evaluation, and the Polish Peasant's Party (PSL) last week moved for a vote of non-confidence in the minister. Should it succeed, he would become the fourth minister in charge of privatization to be dismissed in less than three years. Expect the fun to continue.
A League of Polish Families (LPR) deputy, Robert Strąk, occupied the rostrum in the lower house of parliament for three hours last week, demanding that the speaker put the motion to the vote. Marek Borowski, who continues as speaker despite his resignation from the post after setting up Polish Social Democracy (SdPl), a splinter group from the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD), explained that Strąk's demand flew in the face of parliamentary procedures but proved unable to stop the occupation.
Occupying the roster has become something of a tradition in this parliament. The practice, pioneered by Andrzej Lepper's Samoobrona (Self-defense), has now been taken up by a rival populist party, the LPR, and some SLD deputies seem to be warming to the idea as well. Seeing the speaker's impotence in the face of Strąk's determination to paralyze proceedings, Joanna Senyszyn joined him at the roster, saying that as she is running for the same European Parliament constituency as the LPR deputy, she would like to emulate his campaign tactics. The next to scale the steps leading to the roster was another SLD member, Piotr Gadzinowski, whose declared intention was to wave his hand to "rabbit's friends and relations" who were watching TV.
It is nice to see deputies having fun. Clearly, Strąk's action provided a welcome break from their dreary jobs. It would be cruel to deny them a bit of a break. After all, they are only human. What is more, the occupation worked. The LPR got what it wanted and the vote on the new commission of inquiry was scheduled for the following Monday. It was all innocent fun and, in deputy Strąk's words, "it demonstrated the LPR's ability to defend the national interest" that was under threat from privatization enthusiasts.
But what of the fact that the case demonstrates that breaking the law pays? After all, Strąk displayed a fragrant disregard for the rules that govern parliamentary proceedings. Who would worry about that? It was Andrzej Lepper who set the example, and he has built his whole political career on consistently breaking the law and getting away with it. Apart from the short jail term he served in the mid-90s for his part in the beating up of a businessman, none of the many criminal sentences passed on him has been executed. It would be ridiculous to suggest that Strąk has undermined this parliament's authority. Any semblance of it was long gone before he decided to provide his moment of comic relief from the serious business of running the country.
For while last Wednesday's session of parliament turned into farce, the matter at hand was, in fact, quite serious. One backdrop against which to see the events is the recent political infighting within the parliamentary parties. Strąk's heroic defense of patriotic values came just hours after the defection of a group of far-right deputies from his party, which combines Catholic integrism with extreme nationalism. Interestingly, the splinter group finds the LPR too lenient in its fight against the Masonic conspiracy, whose most recent incarnation is the European Union. Senyszyn and Gadzinowski, on the other hand, are both known for their criticism of Leszek Miller's leadership style, yet neither joined Speaker Borowski's splinter group. So it was vital for all those concerned to get that precious TV exposure that could so easily have focused on the defectors.
Then there is the controversy over Orlen. The oil firm's chief shareholder is the State Treasury with 27 percent of the stock, but it is commonly believed that Jan Kulczyk, the richest man in the country, holds the controlling stake of six percent. The maths may be dodgy, but then so are many things about the company. Take the case of Andrzej Modrzejewski, a former CEO, who was arrested in a spectacular action involving commandos back in February 2002. According to Waldemar Kaczmarek, one of the leading SLD defectors and the treasury minister at the time, the arrest was politically inspired, with Prime Minister Leszek Miller openly asking the justice minister of the day to find an excuse for it in Kaczmarek's presence.
How noble of Kaczmarek to reveal such criminal proceedings in the government. Shame, though, that he did so only two years after the fact, when he had clear reasons to attack his former party and its beleaguered leader.
Earlier this month, Jan Waga of Kulczyk Holding replaced the State Treasury's appointee to Orlen's supervising board as its chairman. According to Treasury Minister Zbigniew Kaniewski, the change boosted the Treasury's representation on the board. Many beg to differ with the minister's evaluation, and the Polish Peasant's Party (PSL) last week moved for a vote of non-confidence in the minister. Should it succeed, he would become the fourth minister in charge of privatization to be dismissed in less than three years. Expect the fun to continue.
