Tuesday brought another round of testimonies before two investigative committees probing scandals connected to the alleged dealing in Polish visas and the mismanagement of funds during an abortive attempt to organize a mail-in presidential vote in 2020.
The investigative committees are two out of three set up to scrutinize alleged abuses of power, corruption, and mismanagement of state funds under the previous government of Law and Justice (PiS).
Visa committee
On Tuesday, before the parliamentary investigative committee on the visa scandal, former counselor at the Polish Embassy in Dakar, and current consul in Tunis, Maciej Kowalski, stood, followed by testimony from Lech Kołakowski, who served as Deputy Minister of Agriculture from 2021 to 2023.
Committee chairman Michał Szczerba (Civic Coalition - KO) began Tuesday’s session by informing about an email from the end of September 2022, sent to the then Deputy Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Piotr Wawrzyk, by Lech Kołakowski, conveying a request from Carmain sp. z o.o. to expedite visa issuance for 39 individuals from African countries, plus two children of one of the women. The email was forwarded to the consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and then to Maciej Kowalski.
Szczerba noted that Carmain, registered in Warsaw at a virtual address, had not submitted reports to the National Court Register since 2012 and was removed from the VAT register in 2017. Kowalski acknowledged this as unusual, explaining that while arranging additional meetings outside the queue is common in consular work, it typically serves justified interests, such as facilitating visa issuance for athletes.
Kowalski highlighted challenges faced by the small and overworked Senegal office (which also serves several other West African countries, where Poland’s Ambassador to Senegal is accredited - TVP World). He expressed doubts about the visa applications mentioned in the email, noting the lack of occupation information, which hindered assessment.
“In my opinion, they didn’t have steady jobs, were often illiterate, didn’t show proficiency in foreign languages. They had minimal knowledge of what they were supposed to do,” the witness testified.
The witness informed that only some of these individuals were registered in the system, and the visa application process for the rest had not even been initiated. He also testified that an employee of Carmain contacted the Dakar office and tried to exert pressure. He added that he could not remember exactly what the company did, but according to him, in practice, it was about bringing foreigners to work. As he testified, he informed the ambassador in Senegal on the matter of these 39 visa applicants. Kowalski also testified that he discussed the visa-related issue with Kołakowski.
“The Minister tried to contact me to discuss speeding up meetings for a group of 40 people from Guinea. He tried to explain to me where such a need came from, arguing that without cheap labor from Africa, it would not be possible to conduct the harvest, and it would have a serious impact on the country’s economy,” he explained.
He mentioned, how he got the impression that ultimately “everyone stuck to their version,” and that Kołakowski did not contact him further.
He admitted that there is a possibility that the minister was misled regarding the purpose of the arrival of the mentioned group of foreigners to Poland.
Asked about his relationship with the then Deputy Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Piotr Wawrzyk, he said he had no direct contact with him.
“However, tracking the history of correspondence addressed to me, it is evident that the minister was clearly interested in this matter,” Kowalski observed. He pointed out that he received a query from the former deputy director of the consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the reason for refusing visa issuance. She informed him that the former director of the consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Marcin Jakubowski, was summoned to Wawrzyk to explain the matter and the reasons for refusal. However, the witness admitted that inquiring about the reasons for not issuing visas is nothing extraordinary.
Kowalski also told the committee that his decision was never questioned.
“I was asked for explanations, I explained, and that’s where the matter ended,” he testified. The consul also assured that no one demanded visa issuance from him by bypassing procedures or unlawfully, and he does not remember issuing any visas under pressure.
The witness also assured that he had no dealings with Wawrzyk’s former colleague, Edgar Kobos.
When asked if he knew of cases of selling Polish visas, he said he had not heard of such cases.
“In the sense in which it was presented in the media, that tables with visas were set up somewhere near the consulate, it is absolutely impossible. It’s not possible to sell a visa at a stall because the system doesn’t allow it,” he added.
During the interrogation, Kołakowski emphasized that two issues should be separated: the so-called visa scandal from actions resulting from the Polish countryside’s needs resulting from lack of labor.
He said that when he was Deputy Minister of Agriculture, he was approached by farmer and orchardist organizations. He noticed that after many Poles went to the EU to work, a labor shortage emerged in the market. He further stated, that the Polish economy lacks several million workers, and there are also significant shortages in agriculture.
The witness assured that his actions were based on the needs presented by agricultural organizations, and “if visas are necessary, there are state authorities that deal with them.” In his opinion, the role of the state and the government is to ensure Poland’s food security and provide seasonal workers for agriculture.
Visa committee
On Tuesday, before the parliamentary investigative committee on the visa scandal, former counselor at the Polish Embassy in Dakar, and current consul in Tunis, Maciej Kowalski, stood, followed by testimony from Lech Kołakowski, who served as Deputy Minister of Agriculture from 2021 to 2023.
Committee chairman Michał Szczerba (Civic Coalition - KO) began Tuesday’s session by informing about an email from the end of September 2022, sent to the then Deputy Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Piotr Wawrzyk, by Lech Kołakowski, conveying a request from Carmain sp. z o.o. to expedite visa issuance for 39 individuals from African countries, plus two children of one of the women. The email was forwarded to the consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and then to Maciej Kowalski.
Szczerba noted that Carmain, registered in Warsaw at a virtual address, had not submitted reports to the National Court Register since 2012 and was removed from the VAT register in 2017. Kowalski acknowledged this as unusual, explaining that while arranging additional meetings outside the queue is common in consular work, it typically serves justified interests, such as facilitating visa issuance for athletes.
Kowalski highlighted challenges faced by the small and overworked Senegal office (which also serves several other West African countries, where Poland’s Ambassador to Senegal is accredited - TVP World). He expressed doubts about the visa applications mentioned in the email, noting the lack of occupation information, which hindered assessment.
“In my opinion, they didn’t have steady jobs, were often illiterate, didn’t show proficiency in foreign languages. They had minimal knowledge of what they were supposed to do,” the witness testified.
The witness informed that only some of these individuals were registered in the system, and the visa application process for the rest had not even been initiated. He also testified that an employee of Carmain contacted the Dakar office and tried to exert pressure. He added that he could not remember exactly what the company did, but according to him, in practice, it was about bringing foreigners to work. As he testified, he informed the ambassador in Senegal on the matter of these 39 visa applicants. Kowalski also testified that he discussed the visa-related issue with Kołakowski.
“The Minister tried to contact me to discuss speeding up meetings for a group of 40 people from Guinea. He tried to explain to me where such a need came from, arguing that without cheap labor from Africa, it would not be possible to conduct the harvest, and it would have a serious impact on the country’s economy,” he explained.
He mentioned, how he got the impression that ultimately “everyone stuck to their version,” and that Kołakowski did not contact him further.
He admitted that there is a possibility that the minister was misled regarding the purpose of the arrival of the mentioned group of foreigners to Poland.
Asked about his relationship with the then Deputy Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Piotr Wawrzyk, he said he had no direct contact with him.
“However, tracking the history of correspondence addressed to me, it is evident that the minister was clearly interested in this matter,” Kowalski observed. He pointed out that he received a query from the former deputy director of the consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the reason for refusing visa issuance. She informed him that the former director of the consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Marcin Jakubowski, was summoned to Wawrzyk to explain the matter and the reasons for refusal. However, the witness admitted that inquiring about the reasons for not issuing visas is nothing extraordinary.
Kowalski also told the committee that his decision was never questioned.
“I was asked for explanations, I explained, and that’s where the matter ended,” he testified. The consul also assured that no one demanded visa issuance from him by bypassing procedures or unlawfully, and he does not remember issuing any visas under pressure.
The witness also assured that he had no dealings with Wawrzyk’s former colleague, Edgar Kobos.
When asked if he knew of cases of selling Polish visas, he said he had not heard of such cases.
“In the sense in which it was presented in the media, that tables with visas were set up somewhere near the consulate, it is absolutely impossible. It’s not possible to sell a visa at a stall because the system doesn’t allow it,” he added.
During the interrogation, Kołakowski emphasized that two issues should be separated: the so-called visa scandal from actions resulting from the Polish countryside’s needs resulting from lack of labor.
He said that when he was Deputy Minister of Agriculture, he was approached by farmer and orchardist organizations. He noticed that after many Poles went to the EU to work, a labor shortage emerged in the market. He further stated, that the Polish economy lacks several million workers, and there are also significant shortages in agriculture.
The witness assured that his actions were based on the needs presented by agricultural organizations, and “if visas are necessary, there are state authorities that deal with them.” In his opinion, the role of the state and the government is to ensure Poland’s food security and provide seasonal workers for agriculture.
Mail-in vote committee
Also in session on Tuesday was the investigative committee on the mail-in vote. The session began with testimony from a member of the political cabinet and advisor to former Minister of Interior Mariusz Kamiński, as well as a former member of the supervisory board of the Polish Security Printing Works, Wiktor Klimiuk.
Klimiuk, questioned by committee chairman Dariusz Joński (KO), stated that he was not aware of any contacts between the leadership of the Prime Minister’s Chancellery, Ministry of Administration and Digitization, State Electoral Commission, and Polish Post regarding the organization of postal voting in 2020. He mentioned later discussions regarding payment for printing the electoral cards.
Joński asked Klimiuk about his role in preparing for the elections. Klimiuk clarified that he was not involved until the printing of the ballots had already begun. He confirmed sending an email to the director of Kamiński's political cabinet regarding legal issues, but could not recall specifics.
Klimiuk addressed the agreement between the Interior Ministry and Polish Security Printing Works (PWPW) for ballot printing, citing the Polish Post’s unexpected order to PWPW as the reason for not finalizing the agreement. He noted that the Ministry was later informed of this choice.
Despite the absence of a signed agreement, ballot printing commenced on the assumption that the Polish Post’s order covered both printing and delivery, guided by legal counsel. Regarding Minister Kamiński’s awareness of the unsigned agreement, Klimiuk indicated that the PWPW board notified Kamiński of their decision based on the Polish Post’s directive.
Klimiuk emphasized that the assumption was that the agreement was in effect once tasks were being carried out. He defended his actions, stating that he did not mislead the Minister, and only acted on information provided by the PWPW board.
The committee examined the discrepancy between Klimiuk’s testimony and the findings of the National Audit Office (NIK) and the Polish Post. Klimiuk maintained his stance, asserting that he followed the instructions he received.
Also in session on Tuesday was the investigative committee on the mail-in vote. The session began with testimony from a member of the political cabinet and advisor to former Minister of Interior Mariusz Kamiński, as well as a former member of the supervisory board of the Polish Security Printing Works, Wiktor Klimiuk.
Klimiuk, questioned by committee chairman Dariusz Joński (KO), stated that he was not aware of any contacts between the leadership of the Prime Minister’s Chancellery, Ministry of Administration and Digitization, State Electoral Commission, and Polish Post regarding the organization of postal voting in 2020. He mentioned later discussions regarding payment for printing the electoral cards.
Joński asked Klimiuk about his role in preparing for the elections. Klimiuk clarified that he was not involved until the printing of the ballots had already begun. He confirmed sending an email to the director of Kamiński's political cabinet regarding legal issues, but could not recall specifics.
Klimiuk addressed the agreement between the Interior Ministry and Polish Security Printing Works (PWPW) for ballot printing, citing the Polish Post’s unexpected order to PWPW as the reason for not finalizing the agreement. He noted that the Ministry was later informed of this choice.
Despite the absence of a signed agreement, ballot printing commenced on the assumption that the Polish Post’s order covered both printing and delivery, guided by legal counsel. Regarding Minister Kamiński’s awareness of the unsigned agreement, Klimiuk indicated that the PWPW board notified Kamiński of their decision based on the Polish Post’s directive.
Klimiuk emphasized that the assumption was that the agreement was in effect once tasks were being carried out. He defended his actions, stating that he did not mislead the Minister, and only acted on information provided by the PWPW board.
The committee examined the discrepancy between Klimiuk’s testimony and the findings of the National Audit Office (NIK) and the Polish Post. Klimiuk maintained his stance, asserting that he followed the instructions he received.
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