Politics

Culture minister says head of Polish media regulator could face State Tribunal

Photo: PAP/Paweł Supernak
Photo: PAP/Paweł Supernak
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Poland’s culture minister, Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz, has said he is considering a motion to bring Maciej Świrski, the chairman of the National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT), before the State Tribunal.

In December last year, Sienkiewicz launched changes to the country’s public media in a bid to “de-politicize” them after the eight-year rule of the previous Law and Justice (PiS) government.

In late March, MPs from the ruling coalition filed a notification with the prosecutors about an alleged crime committed by Świrski, who had failed to transfer income from television and radio licensing fees to public media.

He claimed that they had been “taken over” illegally by the new government.
On Thursday, Sienkiewicz told a press conference that the PiS-backed Świrski was refusing to send the licensing fees to the state-owned media because “his political colleagues are not in power there.”

“This is the reason, and let’s not pretend it’s something else,” he said. “It significantly violates the law, and the prosecutor’s office has been notified in this case.”

“The proxy of the [state-owned broadcaster] TVP liquidator is acting on this issue, and I am seriously considering submitting a motion to parliament for a State Tribunal for Mr. Świrski, because I think this has crossed every line,” Sienkiewicz said.

He added that failure to provide public media with due licensing fees “has all the signs of a serious legal violation.”

The State Tribunal handles cases of alleged wrongdoing by people holding high public office.
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