Poland’s Prime Minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, has vowed to take decisive action in response to a visa issuance scandal. He has announced the dismissal of officials implicated in the controversy, which has already resulted in charges being filed.
The scandal centers around alleged irregularities in the issuance of work visas to foreigners, with reports suggesting that Poland’s Foreign Ministry may have allowed a significant number of migrants to enter Europe in exchange for bribes. Piotr Wawrzyk, the former Deputy Foreign Minister responsible for consular matters and visas, has been linked to a draft regulation aimed at facilitating visas for temporary workers from approximately 20 countries, including Islamic nations. This directive reportedly opened the door to employing up to 400,000 workers in Poland.
With Poland’s general election scheduled for October 15, the scandal could potentially damage the government’s reputation. The government has placed a strong emphasis on protecting the country from perceived threats associated with unrestricted migration.
In a social media video statement, Prime Minister Morawiecki downplayed the scale of the scandal, stating that they had identified irregularities in several hundred visas and taken appropriate law enforcement action. Seven individuals have been charged, and three are in custody. Morawiecki expressed confidence that those responsible would face appropriate consequences and ordered the dismissal of officials who failed in their duties.
Morawiecki also criticized Donald Tusk, leader of the opposition Civic Platform, accusing him of exploiting the issue for political gain. Tusk’s alleged goal is to create a sense of threat based on what Morawiecki calls a false narrative, one that he believes will be propagated by foreign media sympathetic to Tusk. Morawiecki also held Tusk, along with Angela Merkel and Manfred Weber, accountable for what he described as a flawed migration policy that led to issues like illegal immigration, crime, and chaos in Europe.