By Stanley Bill

Two days ago President Andrzej Duda astonished both politicians and pundits by vetoing 2 of 3 controversial judicial reform acts proposed by the Polish government. In his justification, Duda indirectly attacked the Justice Minister – who is also the Public Prosecutor General – for attempting to acquire undue influence over the judicial system. Inspired by the advice of veteran “Solidarity” campaigner Zofia Romaszewska, Duda argued that “in the Polish constitution and in the Polish constitutional system the Public Prosecutor General has never had any supervision over the Supreme Court.” In a possible clue to a more personal motivation and an internal party power play, he also expressed his disappointment that he had not been consulted – presumably by the Justice Ministry – during the preparation of the bill.

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