In September, the Płock district council will consider another PiS motion to dismiss the Płock district governor, Sylwester Z., who was convicted in June of this year with an invalid verdict for driving under the influence of alcohol. The appeal procedure against this verdict is currently underway in court. The district governor previously apologized “for the situation” and assured that he would “face the full consequences of his act.”
Płock District Officer Sylwester Z. was detained on April 6, 2023 in Nowy Gulczewo on national road No. 62 after the officer on duty at the Płock City Police Headquarters reported to all patrols about a driver of a vehicle who may be under the influence of alcohol. Tests, which were conducted several times, showed the highest result of over 2.5 per mille.
The vote on the motion to dismiss the starosta of Płock, Sylwester Z., was included in the agenda of the session of the district council convened for September 11 this year – according to the published announcement of this meeting.
The motion was submitted by the PiS district councillors' club on 19 June this year, during the council session, when it was decided, among other things, to grant the district board a vote of confidence, as part of the debate on the report on the state of the district in 2023. In the justification of the motion, it was emphasised at the time, among other things, that “the starost of Płock should be a person with an impeccable reputation, who is an example to the residents, especially our children”.
“He was not a safe driver”
District Court in Płock on June 11 this year sentenced Sylwester Z., accused of driving under the influence, to eight months in prison suspended for one year, PLN 8,000 in cash benefits and a driving ban for four years.
In issuing the verdict, which is not final, the court found that the evidence collected in the case leaves no doubt that the Płock district governor was intoxicated on the day of his arrest while driving a company car. It also noted that the accused himself did not question the circumstances in which he was arrested and admitted guilt.
“He was not a safe driver. He caused a significant hazard in traffic,” the court emphasized, among others, in the oral justification of the verdict against Sylwester Z.
During the trial of the Płock district governor, the prosecutor requested an eight-month suspended prison sentence for two years, a PLN 10,000 cash benefit, and a four-year driving ban, while the defense requested a fine.
Judgment “appealed in its entirety”
As reported on Thursday by the spokeswoman of the District Court in Płock, Judge Iwona Wiśniewska-Bartoszewska, an appeal has been filed so far by one of Sylwester Z.'s defense attorneys, in which the judgment issued in the first instance on June 11 this year “was appealed in its entirety.”
– The accused's second defense attorney was called to supplement the motion to prepare a justification by signing it – added judge Wiśniewska-Bartoszewska. She also noted that the motion had already been supplemented.
– Currently, the case is under inter-instance proceedings – emphasized the spokeswoman for the Płock District Court. Only after its completion, as she explained, will a date for the appeal hearing be set.
He assured that he would “face the full consequences of his actions”
Back in May 2023, after the District Prosecutor's Office in Płock charged Sylwester Z. with driving under the influence, the Płock County Council of the previous term rejected a motion to dismiss him from the position of starost. The PSL councillors opposed the dismissal, which was requested by the PiS councillors' club.
At the session of the district council preceding the vote, Sylwester Z., apologizing “for the situation that occurred”, assured that “he would face the full consequences of his actions”.
He has been a starost since 2021.
Sylwester Z. is 39 years old. He was elected to the position of Płock starost for the first time in 2021 after the tragic death of his predecessor, 38-year-old starost Mariusz Bieńek, who drowned in the Vistula River. Previously, since 2014, he was the mayor of the Radzanowo commune in Płock county.
In the local elections of April 7 this year, Sylwester Z. won the mandate of a Płock district councilor from the coalition list Trzecia Droga (TD) Polska 2050 of Szymon Hołownia – Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe. He was then re-elected as the starosta of Płock.
In the 23-person Płock County Council of the current term, after the last local elections, there are 10 PiS councillors, nine from the TD, three from the KO and one representing the KW Association “Gminy dla powiatu”, while the county board includes representatives of the TD and KO.
Main image source: Adobe Stock