Following the events that took place in the Sejm, the facts must be established—and they are as follows. The President does not, under any circumstances, recognize what happened today in the Sejm as a valid oath-taking. It can only be described as a political farce or grotesque spectacle—some kind of political theater, said the Head of the Chancellery of the President, Zbigniew Bogucki, during a statement to the media.
As he emphasized, “the oath should be taken before the President of the Republic of Poland—that is, in the presence of the President—just as was the case with the swearing-in of two judges on April 1 at the Presidential Palace before the Head of State.”
This is determined by Article 4(1) of the Act on the Status of Judges of the Constitutional Tribunal. By way of analogy, Bogucki referred to Article 130 of the Constitution, which clearly states that the President of Poland assumes office after taking an oath before the National Assembly. “Can you imagine a situation in which the President does not take the oath before the National Assembly—that is, does not come to the Sejm where deputies and senators are present—but instead takes such an oath before a notary? Would those currently in power, or all those lawyers and experts, some with professorial titles, recognize that the President had assumed office? I believe not. No one could claim that the oath had been taken before the National Assembly—just as today it cannot be recognized that an oath was taken before the President,” Bogucki pointed out.
The presidential minister stated that what occurred today was merely a declaration made by individuals selected for the position of judges of the Constitutional Tribunal before a notary.
He added that it is worth recalling constitutional provisions by analogy, noting that representatives of the current government had previously done everything to prevent President Karol Nawrocki from taking the oath before the National Assembly.
“Was there ever any rational idea for the President to take the oath by post, before a notary, or in any other form? This is grotesque. This is damaging the state. This is undermining the constitutional foundations of the Republic of Poland,” Bogucki stressed.