Vice premiere Przemysław Gosiewski told Polish Radio One this morning that more and more information pointed to Lepper’s role in the corruption scandal. He also reminded that Piotr R., one of the two men arrested in connection with the scandal, was proposed as Samoobrona’s member of the supervisory board of Polish TV, according to his information from the head of the Polish radio and TV regulator (KRRiT).
Gosiewski stressed Lepper’s close connections with Piotr R. and the fact that the former deputy PM had praised Piotr R’s competences on many occasions. Gosiewski added that he had often reminded Lepper that his relation with the arrested had been “an inappropriate acquaintance".
Mariusz Kamiński, head of the Central Anticorruption Bureau (CBA) denied at a press conference on Wednesday that the secret operation in the Ministry of Agriculture was a political attack on Andrzej Lepper, and said it only targetted the two arrested, Andrzej K. and Piotr R.
Vice PM Gosiewski stressed that Andrzej Lepper would have to explain his role in the scandal before the prosecutor. In Gosiewski’s view, Lepper had material knowledge on the issue, and should not hold any posts in the government for as long as he remained within the circle of suspects.
Gosiewski believes co-operation with Samoobrona without Lepper is possible. He ensured that Law and Justice (PiS) did not intend to divide Samoobrona.
Gosiewski said that Andrzej Aumiller (Samoobrona) would make a good candidate for agriculture minister. On Wednesday, Lepper dissociated himself from that candidature, even though Janusz Maksymiuk (Samoobrona deputy chairman) had confirmed that Aumiller was Samoobrona’s contender for the position in the ministry. Gosiewski reminded that Aumiller was a good minister of construction and had experience in agriculture.
Gosiewski was also positive about Maciej Jabłoński, present secretary of state at the ministry of agriculture, as a candidate for the job.
Russian theories on Lepper-gate
Russian theories on Lepper-gate
Meanwhile the “Rossijskaja Gazeta” daily writes that the reasons behind Lepper’s dismissal are his ‘pro-Russian stance and his opposition to the deployment of the American anti-missile shield in Poland’, a theory refuted by the “Wiremia Nowostiej” daily.
Nikolaj Bucharin from the Institute of Economy of the Russian Academy of Science points out in the latter that Lepper is a populist, which is the only reason for his fondness for Russia.
“If a politician were pro-Russian, he wouldn’t be in the most anti-Russian government,” he adds.
Bucharin is of the opinion that the situation in Poland will soon calm down. According to him, PIS’s coalition partners will not agree to earlier elections, because they would have little chance of getting into Sejm again.