Polish minister resigns after filing complaint against postal worker who confronted him over inflation

A minister has resigned from Poland’s government due to anger over his decision to issue a complaint against a post office worker after she confronted him over rising inflation. His actions were widely criticised not only by the opposition but also by others within the ruling camp.

The incident in question took place last Friday, when Michał Cieślak – a minister responsible for local government – visited a post office in the small town of Pacanów to collect a letter.

When the manager of the post office, Agnieszka Głazek, realised who he was, she began to complain to him about inflation in Poland – which is among the highest in the European Union – and rising interest rates. She asked Cieślak why the government has not done more about it.

According to Głazek, who spoke to broadcaster TVN24 about the incident, Cieślak told her that she could run for political office if she wanted. She responded that she would “have to learn to lie” first.

Głazek said that a dozen or so minutes later, she was summoned by her director, who informed her that she would be fired for her remarks to the minister about “political issues”. The post office director, Wojciech Stelmach, is a member of the same political party as Cieślak.

The post office later announced that a complaint against Głazek was being examined but that she had not yet formally faced any disciplinary consequences. The Gazeta Wyborcza daily reported that she had been temporarily removed from her position.

On Tuesday, Cieślak then published a statement. He said that Głazek had behaved in a manner “not befitting her office”, including using “profanities” (Głazek denies this). He confirmed that he had informed her supervisor about the episode.

His actions were strongly criticised by opposition figures, who called for his resignation. Jan Grabiec, a spokesman for the largest opposition party, Civic Platform (PO), likened the episode to the kind of thing that happened under communism, when people were “fired for talking about things inconvenient for the authorities”.

There were also more subtle rebukes from Cieślak’s colleagues in the ruling camp. The government’s spokesman, Piotr Müller, told TVN24 that he “would certainly not have behaved like Minister Cieślak” in that situation. “We are public figures” and often have to “hear unpleasant words”.

As pressure grew, Cieślak began to backtrack. He told the media on Wednesday that he had written to the head of the post office asking for his complaint to be withdrawn.

“I regret that this situation happened,” said Cieślak, who admitted that he had “maybe acted too impulsively”. However, he refused to apologise and also refused to reveal what profanities Głazek had allegedly used towards him.

Cieślak’s fate was then sealed on Wednesday evening when Jarosław Kaczyński, chairman of the Law and Justice (PiS) party and the dominant figure in the ruling coalition, announced that he “expects the minister to resign. If he does not, he will be fired”.

Kaczyński confirmed that Cieślak’s position in the government would still be reserved for another member of the Republican Party (Republikanie) that he represents, which is a junior partner in the ruling coalition.

Late last night, Cieślak announced on Twitter that he had resigned. “Responsibility for the future of our political camp often requires making difficult decisions,” he wrote. The Republicans have already nominated another of their MPs, Włodzimierz Tomaszewski, to replace Cieślak.

Yesterday afternoon the post office also issued a statement saying that its investigation has found no premises for taking disciplinary action against Głazek and that she would therefore continue to work in her previous role.

Main image credit: KPRM (under CC BY 3.0 PL)

Daniel Tilles

Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.