A plot of land that was supposed to be used for a service hub ended up not with CPK, but in the hands of a businessman from the processing industry. The decision was made by a government agency. Former CPK president Mikołaj Wild, who spoke to the portal Niezalezna.pl, has no doubt that the implementation of the CPK project “cuts across the interests of certain local business owners, whose interests in this matter were placed above the interest of the State Treasury.” He stresses that the disputed plot of land, for which CPK was refused, was not the only State Treasury property of this kind. Does this mean other plots near the planned investment may also have ended up in private hands? Wild admits that when he was running the company, the management did not assume a “criminal nature” in the transaction involving the sale of the plot in Zabłotnia, because they did not know of the “shocking circumstances” that the media have since revealed.
A controversial transaction
On Monday, the public learned the background of a controversial sale of a 160-hectare plot in Zabłotnia, a plot seen as crucial for the construction of the Central Transportation Hub (Centralny Port Komunikacyjny, CPK). The land, owned by the National Support Centre for Agriculture (KOWR – Warsaw branch), was sold to a private individual – the vice-president of the company Dawtona. The transaction is said to have gone ahead with the approval of the Ministry of Agriculture, headed at the time by Robert Telus, just before the United Right government handed over power. The sale took place despite the opposition of the previous CPK management (under the PiS government), which tried to block the deal and attempted to recover the land through negotiations.
In a statement for Republika, Robert Telus claimed he had “no knowledge of this transaction, nor of the fact that such a plot was being sold.” On Monday, both Robert Telus and Rafał Romanowski (former deputy agriculture minister) were suspended from their rights as members of Law and Justice (PiS) until the matter is clarified.
After the change of government, Donald Tusk’s cabinet did nothing about the matter for two years. The government’s commissioner for CPK, Maciej Lasek, admitted that it was only in July 2025 that a notification was filed with the prosecutor’s office.
Strange behavior by KOWR
Niezalezna.pl asked former CPK president Mikołaj Wild for comment on this shocking case. We asked how it was possible that the information sent by CPK to KOWR – describing the strategic importance of the 160-hectare plot for this investment – was not taken into account when the decision was made to dispose of it.
“Based on what we knew at the time, I would have blamed bureaucratic stupidity. Today, knowing the background described by Wirtualna Polska, we can speak of a suspicion that a crime was committed,” he said.
“This was not the only State Treasury property near the airport for which we received a refusal. One could get the impression that state institutions simply refused to acknowledge that the designated areas would lose their agricultural character once an intercontinental airport is built next door,” he added.
He explained that “the sale of the property took place in December, and we were informed only after the fact.” – “We did not assume a criminal nature to this transaction, because we were not aware of the shocking circumstances revealed by Wirtualna Polska,” admitted Mikołaj Wild.
When asked what failed in this case – procedures or people – our interviewee emphasized that “the problem concerns the Ministry of Agriculture and KOWR, not CPK.” He added: “So I don’t have knowledge on that point. I have no doubt, however, that the implementation of CPK runs counter to the interests of certain local business owners, whose interests in this matter were placed above the interest of the State Treasury.”
“What failed? I hope the prosecutor’s office will clarify that. KOWR, for valid reasons, had the right to refuse us access to that plot. The point is that in this case, such reasons apparently didn’t exist,” he assessed.
More irregularities
Mikołaj Wild declined to answer whether, in his view, the explanation given by former agriculture minister Robert Telus – who claims he knew nothing about the sale – can be considered credible. “It’s not my role to assess the minister’s credibility. That’s what the competent authorities are for,” he said.
We also asked our interlocutor how he views the lack of action by the new CPK leadership and by the Ministry of Agriculture, which oversees KOWR, despite the fact that the notarial deed reportedly includes provisions guaranteeing the possibility of voiding the transaction.
“In 2024 and 2025 we’re dealing with a completely different kind of irregularity. KOWR should have sought to buy the land back or to invalidate the transaction, for example on the basis of the legal mechanism of withdrawing from a declaration of intent that was made as a result of error or deceit. Alternatively, the so-called Development Strategy for the CPK Area should have been amended, because when we drafted it, we assumed this land belonged to the State Treasury. That is something that should have happened – but apparently did not happen, because at the end of 2024 the CPK area development strategy was published, and the plots in Zabłotnia are still assigned functions that multiply the value of the land that was sold,” summarized Mikołaj Wild.