Some like it hot
Every election is a sort of advance auction sale of stolen goods. - H.L. Mencken
The weather has a habit of piling on the misery when you least need it. That has certainly been the case recently as an icy Siberian wind blew freezing chills onto Warsaw's disconsolate population.
And let's face it, weary Varsovians, trudging amid the slush and black ice, have every reason to be dejected. But any passerby will tell you the weather is one of the few constants that can be relied on in Poland these days - ironically along the country's political elite. For the nation has the misfortune to have inherited a gaggle of fools for politicians who, irrespective of political party, stumble from one blind alley to another.
Looking back on the year, the amount of hot air blown freely from politicians' mouths could by now have heated an average workers' block in snow-swept Praga. So here at the Business Journal we're taking a peek at much of the mess politicians left behind them this year. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and let's hope 2002 does not get as bad as this:
Prime Minister Jerzy Buzek accepts the resignation of Treasury Minister Andrzej Chronowski, who is accused of mishandling the privatization of state assets and harming foreign investment, particularly as a result of his conflict with Eureko/BIG BG, the strategic investor in Powszechny Zakład Ubezpieczeń (PZU), Poland's largest insurer.
Buzek accepts the resignation of Jakub Tropiło, the deputy treasury minister in charge of selling off the state's holdings in the energy and sugar sectors.
Buzek sacks Justice Minister Lech Kaczyński after accusing the prime minister of "supporting actions that bring into question the rules of law of order," Buzek said.
Culture Minister Kazimierz Ujazdowski resigns in protest at the sacking of Kaczyński. In a statement Ujazdowski said: "The dismissal of Lech Kaczyński is not a routine personnel decision, but the removal of the first post-1989 politician who has undertaken the real fight against crime, the fight for law and justice."
Buzek sacks Deputy Defense Minister Romuald Szeremietiew over a corruption allegation involving the removal of classified documents out of the ministry's offices.
Buzek sacks Telecommunications Minister Tomasz Szyszko after the Supreme Board of Inspection (NIK) discovered evidence of alleged "corruption mechanisms" within the ministry.
Buzek sacks Finance Minister Jaroslaw Bauc just before the general election. Buzek said he took the decision as the budget deficit had ballooned out of control and Bauc had not informed his Cabinet colleagues in time.
New Prime Minister Leszek Miller speaks out in support of moves to cut the salaries of Monetary Policy Council (RPP) members, saying the law should be changed to avoid having their earnings cause public discontent.
Miller accepts the resignation of the Deputy Prosecutor General Andrzej Kaucz after he is found to be lying about his involvement as prosecuting judge during a communist-era trial.
Miller charges the country's foreign-owned banks with anti-Polish behavior, accusing them of trying to sabotage a key tax in the government's tough economic program.
Andrzej Lepper is removed as deputy speaker of Parliament after he publicly accuses politicians of taking bribes.
Miller accuses the RPP of acting irresponsibly by keeping interest rates high. Krzysztof Rybiński, chief economist of Bank Zachodni WBK, said the RPP "is an independent institution and the prime minister is presenting it with an ultimatum. This will be unwelcome in the European Union, and it could cause a backlash on financial markets."
