Karol Nawrocki did not announce by the evening of September 4 whether he would receive a vow from Maciej Berk, whose Sejm elected that day to the Constitutional Court by 226 votes, 7 above the required majority. Krystian Markiewicz provides for the invitation of Berk to the Palace, but subsequent reports from the president's surroundings indicate a possible refusal. TK's credibility is at stake.
Selection by 7 votes above the threshold
The Sejm elected Maciej Berk as justice of the Constitutional Court on 4 September. The erstwhile Minister liable for overseeing the implementation of government policy won 226 votes, while the required majority was 219. Artur Kotowski, a candidate reported by the PiS, received 184 votes. The consequence of Berk's election and political cracks in the coalition We already described it in the National Journal.
Official vote list of the Sejm shows that the candidacy was voted out with a tiny supply. Berek is to take the place after Justyna Piskorski, whose word of office ends on 18 September. However, the election by the Sejm itself does not close the case. The bill provides for a vow to be made to the President, and the Presidential Palace has not given a date for specified a ceremony.
Markiewicz provides for an invitation to the Palace
Krystian Markiewicz, 1 of 4 lawyers elected in March, from whom the president did not take his vows, estimated in an interview with Virtual Poland that Berek would be invited to the Presidential Palace. In his opinion, Karol Nawrocki wants to keep the separate situation of the 4 and not let it to be ruled. That's Markiewicz's opinion, not information about the decision of the head of state.
At the same time, Markevich expects that Berek will clearly cut off from the planet of politics. specified a request is barely considered excessive. A man who was inactive late in the government of Donald Tusk and was portrayed as his close associate goes to the body to control the compliance of laws with the constitution. The very nomination of Berk raised questions about the independency of the Constitutional Tribunal from the beginning.
Signals of possible refusal flow from the Palace
Markiewicz's forecast is not the only scenario. Karol Nawrocki said on September 3 that the Court needed the least present another policy. He besides pointed to doubts about the candidacy. The next day Virtual Poland, citing the people around the president, stated that the head of state is close to refusing to take a vow. However, the firm did not formally confirm the final decision.
There is besides a dispute surrounding the president about whether Berek has demonstrated the required legal experience. The curious individual himself argued during the parliamentary work that he fulfilled the statutory conditions. Until the competent authorities supply a conclusive assessment of the documents, the procedural uncertainty must not be converted into a presuppose charge. The nine-year word of office of justice TK requires full transparency, not political shortcuts.
The Court cannot be a organization spoil
The vow dispute has been going on since spring. The president received them from Magdalena Bentkowska and Dariusz Szostek, but not from Krystian Markiewicz, Maciej Taborowski, Marcin Dziurda and Anna Korwin-Piotrowska. 4 elected later made vows during the ceremony in the Sejm. The palace felt that the action had no legal effect, and the president addressed to the CCC a request for resolution of the competence dispute.
The ruling coalition for years accused predecessors of politicising the Court. Now she sent a man to him who was inactive a associate of the government in August. It hits the credibility of her own passwords. The president has the right to request clarification of the doubts, but his decision must be based on the constitution and the bill, not on an ad hoc organization account.
For Poles there is no comfort of Donald Tusk, Karol Nawrocki or any party. It is the Court capable of controlling power and protecting the constitutional order of the state. If each majority treats the TK as a prey, the citizen will be without an impartial guardian of his rights.
Source: Virtual Poland, conversation with Krystian Markiewicz
