“Don’t be fooled, Ladies and Gentlemen!” wrote Rafał Leśkiewicz, referring to the government’s reaction to President Karol Nawrocki’s veto of the amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure. The spokesperson pointed, among other things, to “tax revenues having dropped by nearly one quarter” and a “budget deficit growing at an alarming rate,” juxtaposing these issues with the ongoing political dispute.
President Karol Nawrocki vetoed the amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure. It was stated that the decision was related to provisions that could have limited the possibility of applying pre-trial detention to perpetrators of the most serious crimes, including pedophiles, hackers, or individuals encouraging minors to consume alcohol.
The matter was commented on by the President’s spokesperson, Rafał Leśkiewicz, who published a post on social media addressing both the veto itself and the broader condition of the state.
At the outset, he listed:
- A pedophilia scandal in Kłodzko.
- Tax revenues have dropped by nearly one quarter.
- A budget deficit increasing at an alarming rate, which, after the first two months of this year, reached nearly PLN 50 billion (PLN 1 billion per day).
- A case recalled by the media concerning the deputy chairman of the Civic Coalition parliamentary club, lawyer and MP Roman Giertych.
- A collapse of the healthcare system resulting in drastic reductions in medical services.
As he noted, “the list could go on… Meanwhile, those in power are trying to put out successive image crises by using the President of the Republic’s veto of the amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure.”
Leśkiewicz also referred to the law itself:
“The law, which, apart from many good solutions, treated pedophiles leniently. The President of the Republic cannot apply a veto selectively; he may refuse to sign the entire act. And it is precisely because of these harmful provisions that the President decided to exercise his veto. Because pedophilia is one of the most abhorrent crimes,”
he wrote.
He added: “For the ruling coalition, this became a pretext for further attacks.”
“Don’t be fooled, Ladies and Gentlemen!”
he concluded.
The President’s decision was also addressed by the Head of the Chancellery of the President, Zbigniew Bogucki.
“This shows how underdeveloped these provisions were and why the President vetoed this law,”
he said during a press conference.
It was also indicated that the contested regulations could have prevented the use of pre-trial detention in cases concerning crimes against minors.
“Children should be protected. If adults behave toward children in such a way, they must face criminal sanctions, including detention,”
Bogucki emphasized.