A Polish government initiative to look into alleged wrongdoing under the previous administration has so far resulted in 62 people being charged with offenses and a further 149 notifications to the prosecution service of possible crimes.
An ‘accountability team’ was set up last year to investigate allegations of wrongdoing under the Law and Justice (PiS)-led government during its eight years in power. The prime minister, Donald Tusk, told a press conference on Friday that the inquiry and allied actions by the prosecution service had so far secured 112 million złoty (€25.91 million) from accounts held by people under scrutiny, to be used for possible future claims against them by the state.
“This never happened in history before our predecessors,” Tusk said. “This is the first time in the history of Poland, not only since 1989, that government officials who had to cede power after elections have been so effectively held to account.”
Bringing the former government to book was a key election pledge of Tusk’s Civic Coalition (KO) grouping ahead of a national ballot last October that swept PiS and its allies from power.
The inquiry has been wide-ranging but has publicly centered on the use of Pegasus, an Israeli-made covert surveillance technology, against government opponents, and misuse for political gain of money from a ‘Justice Fund’ set up to help victims of crime.
“This never happened in history before our predecessors,” Tusk said. “This is the first time in the history of Poland, not only since 1989, that government officials who had to cede power after elections have been so effectively held to account.”
Bringing the former government to book was a key election pledge of Tusk’s Civic Coalition (KO) grouping ahead of a national ballot last October that swept PiS and its allies from power.
The inquiry has been wide-ranging but has publicly centered on the use of Pegasus, an Israeli-made covert surveillance technology, against government opponents, and misuse for political gain of money from a ‘Justice Fund’ set up to help victims of crime.
Source:
More In Politics MORE...
