Lepper elected deputy Sejm speaker, Kwasniewski swears in new government

The newly-elected Sejm convened for the first time on Friday and elected mil itant farmers' leader Andrzej Lepper as one of its deputy speakers. Marek Bo rowski from the dominant Democratic Left Alliance (SLD), who won the most el ection votes out of all Sejm deputies, was elected the speaker of the chambe r. His deputies will be Janusz Wojciechowski and Tomasz Nalecz from the SLD' s coalition partners, the Polish Peasants Party (PSL) and Labor Union (UP), as well as Donald Tusk from Civic Platform (PO), the largest opposition grou ping, and Lepper. Lepper was elected to the post largely thanks to support f rom the SLD, although some of its key leaders, including Prime Minister Lesz ek Miller and Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, did not vote for him . Later in the day's proceedings, President Aleksander Kwasniewski swore in the new government, saying it faces the greatest challenges since the first non-communist administration. Kwasniewski presented the new ministers with l eather briefcases, "so we can watch you on TV and not be embarrassed that yo u are walking around with ruck-sacks." He also gave the two female members o f the new Cabinet, Krystyna Lybacka and Barbara Piwnik, large bouquets of re d roses. (Gazeta Wyborcza, Oct. 20-21, p. 1) T.J.