Parliamentary elections 2023. Government television showed a message before the speech of the Speaker of the Senate, Tomasz Grodzki

The Senate Marshal’s speech was scheduled after President Andrzej Duda’s speech. Just before the recording of Tomasz Grodzki’s speech was broadcast, a white board with a TVP message appeared on the government television screen.

>>> SEE TOMASZ GRODZKI’S MESSAGE

“Pursuant to Article 22(2) of the Broadcasting Act, Telewizja Polska SA is obliged to broadcast the speech of the Speaker of the Senate. Telewizja Polska SA informs that the content of the speech of the Speaker of the Senate contains election agitation and polemics, thus violating § 5 of the regulation of the National Council Radio and Television of August 21, 1996 on the procedure in connection with the presentation and explanation of state policy in public radio and television by supreme state bodies,” the announcement read.

“The cited provision serves to protect against abuse by persons holding key functions in the state of the right to present and explain state policy during the election campaign. The content of the speech by the Speaker of the Senate constitutes a violation of the principle of equality of electoral committees in presenting free election materials on Telewizja Polska SA” – it was added.

“At the same time, we would like to inform you that in order to maintain the dignity of the State, we have decided to broadcast the above speech. We would like to point out that pursuant to § 4 of the above-mentioned regulation, Telewizja Polska SA is not responsible for the content of the speech of the Speaker of the Senate, Tomasz Grodzki,” the further content of the message read.

In his message, Tomasz Grodzki said, among other things, that: elections “it is a celebration of democracy that should select the best possible representation of the nation in parliament.”

– Regardless of your personal preferences, I appeal to you to choose candidates for whom the constitution is the most important act, who respect democracy, the rule of law, the rights of minorities and people with disabilities, are full of respect for women, understand the need for special care for our children and seniors, and that the foundation of the prosperity and development of our homeland is our presence and our rightful position in FOR THISthe European Union and the community of democratic states of the free world, said the Speaker of the Senate.

He said that “this Sunday we are going to the elections to actually decide whether we want to stay in the European Union.”

– This is a fundamentally important issue, because – as we all see – for several years now our country has been put on the path of conflict with the Community by those in power. For nearly a thousand days, the current government has blocked huge amounts of money from the National Reconstruction Plan for the development of our country and the increase in our wealth. And the pro-government press, which supports such a policy, is directly calling for our country to leave the EU. That is why these elections are so important, because they will decide for years whether we will remain in the European Union and regain our rightful place in the Western community, or whether we will move more and more towards Eastern dictatorships, with dramatic consequences for all of us – he emphasized.

Past messages Marshal Grodzki, and the Speaker of the Sejm Elżbieta Witek, which were broadcast during the ongoing election campaign in mid-September, were not preceded by a government television announcement.