New! The Pegasus Investigation Commission is losing credibility?

wbijamszpile.pl 9 months ago

The work of the Pegasus Parliamentary Investigative Commission is being questioned. With each session, fresh problems appear that undermine its seriousness and effectiveness. The deficiency of cooperation from key witnesses, including erstwhile Secret Service officers, only exacerbates the crisis around this institution.

One of the most fresh examples of the committee's disregard was Ernest Bejda, erstwhile head of the Central Anti-corruption Bureau (CBA). It was to be interviewed on Tuesday, October 8th, about the Pegasus surveillance. However, Bejda did not appear before the committee, citing the judgement of the Constitutional Court of September.

This decision was powerfully commented on by Vice-President Trela.

This is specified a trick of PiS politicians, due to the fact that for them the committee is illegal – said Trela in a conversation with the media.

In turn, the committee itself unanimously voted on the motion to punish Bejda. Trela stressed that specified justifications would not be honoured.

This is an organized action that aims to avoid coming to the committee – he explained.

The Commission announced that in the absence of further absence, it would request that Bejda be forced to be interviewed.

Read more: Shocking poll results. Poles do not believe in the Sejm Investigation Commissions

Judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal and the legality of the committee’s actions

The judgement of the Constitutional Court of September 2023, which Bejda referred to, finds the scope of the proceedings of the Pegasus Investigation Commission to be unconstitutional. The Constitutional Tribunal, chaired by justice Stanislaw Piotrowicz, ruled that the resolution of the Sejm on the appointment of the committee was "affected by a legal defect". The main allegation was that the Sejm adopted a resolution in the incorrect composition, preventing the exercise of the parliamentary mandate of Mariusz Kamiński and Maciej Wąsik, who were sentenced by final sentences.

In the light of this judgment, many witnesses, related to government and peculiar services, mention the argument that the committee is acting illegally, which undermines its ability to act effectively. Vice-President Trela disagrees with this interpretation, stressing that the committee has the right and work to question witnesses.

Controversy around hearings and non-cooperation

Ernest Bejda's abstinence is not the only case that raises doubts about the future of the committee. Earlier, during the hearings of another witnesses specified as Jarosław Kaczyński or Michał Woś, there were allegations of avoiding full cooperation. Now the situation becomes even more tense erstwhile another witnesses refuse to appear before the committee, citing the decisions of the Constitutional Court.

The case of surveillance with Pegasus, which was to include, among others, prosecutor Ewa Wrzosek, is 1 of the main points of the committee's investigation. Hearings on this issue aim to explain how and why this controversial tool was utilized to supervise public individuals. However, the deficiency of cooperation from erstwhile peculiar services officers may make it much harder to come to the truth.