Three weeks after the victory at the polls of an alliance opposing the ultranationalist Government of the Polish Law and Justice party (PiS), the president of the republic, Andrzej Duda, has decided to delay the transfer of powers by inviting the party that facilitated the presidency.
In a televised message, Duda announced that “after consultations and thorough consultations and careful consideration” he has invited the acting Prime Minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, to form a Government, although so far there is no party willing to form a coalition with the PiS.
Duda explained that he only follows the tradition of offering the first opportunity to form a Government, even if there is a possibility of failure. Morawiecki claimed that opportunity, while PiS is trying to convince opposition deputies to join its project and thus try to form a majority that will allow them to govern.
“We are surveying some opposition MPs who do not agree with the vision of forced European integration and with the program of the left when it comes to ideological issues. There are MPs who are reasonable (…) who have a approach similar to ours,” explained the Government spokesperson, Pior Müller, a few days ago.
Müller assured that “only when our candidate is designated by President Duda as in charge of forming a Government will they dare to rebel” against their parties and join the ranks of PiS because, he said, “we already know how the liberal elite would treat them if they did so.” now”.
The president has already nominated a candidate and we will have to wait to see if the rebellion announced by Müller occurs. For the moment, what PiS has gained is time.
The president’s movement, although linked to tradition, will therefore delay the formation of the Government and that means more weeks of political instability, while there is already a majority to start a new legislature. Opposition politicians in Warsaw had repeatedly expressed fears that the president might delay the change of government to give PiS another month or two in power.
Previously, Duda had already set the date of the inaugural session of the new Parliament for November 13, almost a month after the elections.
In the parliamentary elections on October 15, the liberal-conservative coalition (KO), led by Donald Tusk, together with two other opposition parties, the conservative Third Way and the left-wing Lewica alliance, won a clear majority of seats. The parties are already working on a coalition agreement.