Poland Is Ready to Start Probe of Central Banker, Tusk Says
(Bloomberg) -- Poland’s ruling party will submit a motion in parliament within days to start a probe of central bank Governor Adam Glapinski, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
Most Read from Bloomberg
Trump Rules Out Vivek Ramaswamy as Running Mate as He Eyes New Team
Ultra-Wealthy Are Souring on Chicago’s Most Elite Neighborhood
US Weighs Sanctioning Huawei’s Secretive Chinese Chip Network
Apple Is in Talks to Let Google Gemini Power iPhone AI Features
The move will kick off an unprecedented and potentially lengthy procedure aimed at ousting the head of the central bank, who is seen by Tusk’s administration as a political ally of the previously ruling populists.
Probing Glapinski in front of a special tribunal was a promise the prime minister pledged to deliver within the first 100 days in office after his party and its allies took power late last year.
It’s the latest attempt by Tusk to untangle the country’s institutions from the influence of the former Law & Justice cabinet, which is in the opposition after ruling Poland for the previous eight years.
“The motion is ready and will be submitted in the coming days,” Tusk told a news conference on Tuesday.
Tusk’s party has accused Glapinski of engaging in political partisanship, misleading the administration over the central bank’s 2023 financial results and irregularities in the bank’s bond-buying program. The governor has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
Read More: Poland to Move Ahead With Glapinski Probe by End-March
The motion is the first step in a parliamentary procedure which could land Glapinski in front of the tribunal. It has to be signed by 115 lawmakers — less than half of those backing Tusk in the lower house — and submitted to the speaker of parliament.
After that, a parliamentary committee would start its investigation, which involves interrogating witnesses and Glapinski. Finally, the lower house of parliament would listen to the committee’s opinion and vote on whether to put the governor in front of the tribunal.
The probe is set to become a complex process, especially after Glapinski sought support from the European Central Bank and other international institutions.
At home, the Constitutional Tribunal, a court dominated by judges appointed by the previous administration, ruled in January that lawmakers can’t suspend the governor as part of the probe. Law & Justice has also asked the panel to determine whether lawmakers can summon the governor for an interrogation.
Investors have so far ignored the spat over Glapinski, but it is unclear how potential twists involved in the probe will affect the markets. The governor is in his second and final six-year term which runs out in 2028.
--With assistance from Piotr Bujnicki and Maciej Martewicz.
(Updates with details, context from the second paragraph.)
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
China’s Super-Cheap EVs Offer Hope for Average American Buyers
Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers’ $700 Million Man, Will Transform Baseball—If He Wants To
Julius Baer Hits Reboot to Escape Swiss Banking’s New Malaise
Congress Should Think Bigger Than TikTok Ban, Tech Critics Say
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
