The fate of immunity hangs in the balance. Woś: I would proudly do it again

The National Prosecutor submitted a request to the Sejm for consent to criminal prosecution PiS MP Michał Woś at the end of May. It is connected with the investigation into the spending of money for the purchase of Pegasus software from the Justice Fund, as well as the spending of public funds for the purchase of a license to use Pegasus.

On Thursday, the Rules, Parliamentary Affairs and Immunity Committee voted in favor of lifting Woś's immunity and bringing him to criminal liability.

The deputy head of the committee, Tomasz Głogowski (KO), stressed in the Sejm that “the essence of this motion comes down to whether the Justice Fund could be used to finance the Pegasus tools used by the CBA for surveillance and control of conversations via instant messengers.”

As he reported, during the discussion at the committee meeting, “some MPs argued that Woś acted in accordance with the law”. The Penal Code was amended earlier, and the Minister of Justice issued a new regulation, so Woś had the right to transfer PLN 25 million from the fund to CBA, for which it purchased Pegausua,” Głogowski quoted the MPs. According to him, “the most important thing in the motion to waive Woś's immunity is the indication that he consciously misled the Minister of Finance and the Public Finance Committee of the Sejm. – The transfer of funds, the transfer of PLN 25 million to the CBA, required a change to the financial plan, approved by the Minister of Finance and the Public Finance Committee. Woś provided a different legal basis in the agreement between the Ministry of Justice and the CBA, and presented a different one to the Minister of Finance and the Public Finance Committee, he explained.

During Wednesday's discussion, it was pointed out that Article 4, Section 1 of the CBA Act indicates that this secret service is financed from the state budget. In Głogowski's opinion, this provision indicates that the legislator's goal was to ensure maximum independence of this institution. And as he said, “if the Minister of Justice transferred 25 million to the institution, one can suspect that it may be grateful to the donor.”

Michał Woś said in the Sejm on Thursday that every action he took in this matter “was in accordance with the law.” In his opinion, “this case proves that in a democratic state of law, the executive power, having in its hands prosecutorial bodies, such as the prosecutor's office, acting on political orders, can bring charges against anyone and then direct indictments in purely political matters on the basis of invented allegations.”

In May, the attorney general Adam Bodnarpresenting a motion to waive Woś's immunity, said that the charges against the former deputy minister of justice concern abuse of office by a public official (Article 231 of the Penal Code), abuse of trust (Article 296 of the Penal Code) and causing significant property damage.

Woś said that in order for the accusation of a civil service offence brought against him to be brought, one must act illegally, not on the basis of the law. – The 28-page motion of the prosecutor's office does not contain a single sentence, not a single word, as to what personal benefit I allegedly gained – he said. He recalled that the prosecutor's office accuses him of having received a financial and personal benefit in connection with the transfer of this subsidy. – In other words, the prosecutor's office calls the subsidy from public funds for the CBA a financial benefit for the CBA. And for this benefit I should go to prison for 10 years – he said.

– The prosecutor's office did not show any signs of a prohibited act, did not show any actions aimed at obtaining financial or personal benefits, did not show any damage, especially large damage. Therefore, I can tell you with full responsibility: I would proudly make such a decision again, I would grant this funding again, so that criminals, pedophiles, thieves, killers, members of organized criminal groups could be prosecuted by the Polish state, as they deserved – he emphasized.

The vote on lifting Woś's immunity will take place on Friday.

In 2017-2018, Woś was deputy head of the Ministry of Justice in the United Right government. He was authorized by the then Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro to perform the duties of an administrator of the Justice Fund. In September 2017, Woś submitted an application to the Ministry of Finance to change the financial plan of the Justice Fund – the amount of PLN 25 million was transferred to the Central Anticorruption Bureau.

In the fourth quarter, the Sejm also heard the reports of the Rules, Deputies' Affairs and Immunity Committees on the requests of the Police Commander-in-Chief to consent to bringing MP Anita Kucharska-Dziedzic (Left Wing) to criminal liability for an offense and on the request for an offense by MP Grzegorz Gaża (PiS).

The chairman of the committee, Jarosław Urbaniak (KO), announced that the committee voted in favor of rejecting the application regarding MP Kucharska-Dziedzic. The majority of members of the regulations committee clearly stated that the act that would be punishable by MP Anita Kucharska-Dziedzic was related to the performance of her parliamentary mandate – explained Urbaniak.

Kucharska-Dziedzic recalled that the case concerns the events of December 2021, when, together with former left-wing MP Maciej Kopiec, she carried out parliamentary inspections in the Ministry of Sport, where she was assigned at that time. Łukasz Mejza for the position of deputy minister. The MP also recalled that at that time, the media was buzzing with the Mejza scandal, and she submitted subsequent letters to the prosecutor's office regarding irregularities related to the MP's former activities, as well as his incorrect declaration of assets.

Wirtualna Polska published a number of articles at that time in which it described the activities of the former Mejza company offering foreign trips to terminally ill people (including children), including cancer, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. The company allegedly offered expensive treatment using methods considered worldwide to be unproven and dangerous. According to the portal, Mejza's business did not work out, but he left behind many deceived patients and their families.

The MP from the Left was involved in explaining the Mejza scandal, but, unable to obtain information about his past activities, she went with the former MP from the Left to the PiS headquarters and placed cards on the gate with the inscription: “Mr. Kaczyński, aren't you ashamed of Mejza?” 13 days without reaction to the Mejza scandal. The next sheet of paper lists the articles that Mejza was suspected of having violated, including art. 297 of the Penal Code regarding fraud of grants or subsidies. The police filed a motion to punish the deputies for this act.

Kucharska-Dziedzic explained in the Sejm on Thursday that the act she committed falls under the offense of Article 63a of the Code of Offenses, which states that “whoever places an announcement, poster, or bill in a public place not designated for this purpose, or exposes it to public view in another place without the consent of the person managing that place, shall be subject to the penalty of restriction of liberty or a fine.” The Left MP also assured that she does not regret her act, because her voters elected her as their representative precisely to protect public money from fraudsters who defraud it.

On Thursday, the members of the Sejm also heard the report of the Rules and Regulations Committee on the request of the Chief Commander of the Police for the Sejm to consent to criminal liability for the offense of MP Grzegorz Gaża from PiS.

The rapporteur, Tomasz Głogowski, explained that the motion concerns a road accident involving a PiS MP who was driving a car at 99 km/h in an area where the speed limit is 70 km/h. The Committee recommended consent to hold MP Gaża accountable.

MP Gaża assured that the policeman stopped him in a place where the speed limit was 100 km/h. “I was not provided with information as to how far I was when the measurement was taken, which is why I did not submit to the processes proposed by the policeman and did not accept the ticket. I think that we will clarify all doubts as part of further proceedings,” Gaża said.

The Sejm will also decide on these two matters on Friday.