Head of the MON Man of the Year 2025

The Deputy Prime Minister, thanking him for the award, emphasized that he besides came from self-government and that so the place of origin of those who decide on this award is crucial to him. At the same time, the head of the MON recalled that Kraków is simply a military town and listed the units and institutions stationed under Wawel: 2nd Polish Corps, Special Forces Component Command, Medical Army Command, 6th Airborne Brigade and 11 The Małopolska Territorial Defence Brigade.

– These are among the most crucial units in the full country, carrying out their missions in Poland and abroad, as part of the Polish military quotas. Therefore, I dedicate this award to all soldiers of the Polish Army and to all those who are building the safety of the Polish State present – said Deputy Prime Minister during the gala at the Collegium Novum of the Jagiellonian University in Krakow.

In his speech Kosiniak-Kamish pointed out that we are surviving in very hard and dangerous times. At the same time, he emphasized that defence programs are to guarantee that military equipment and skills that Polish soldiers get never should be used. – They are to scare, not intimidate, not against someone, but to defend Poland. That's how I want to build it. The Polish army must be very strong so that it does not pay to attack it," the Deputy Prime Minister pointed out.

The local government Federation besides awarded the title of Man of the Year 2025 to Cardinal prof. Grzegorz Rysi, the Kraków Metropolitan, an outstanding theologian, among others for shaping attitudes of common respect, tolerance and work for another man.

The title of the Malopolan of the Year 2025 was awarded in turn Gen. defends Adam Joks, commander of the 2nd Polish Corps – Command of the Land Component, and sculptor Prof. Wincent Kućma. The general was appreciated for his outstanding merits in the construction of the Polish defence system, a crucial contribution to the improvement of the operational capabilities of the Polish Army and NATO structures, strengthening global military cooperation in the face of threats and for his outstanding service to the safety of Małopolska, Poland and NATO.

Gen. Joks has been in command of 2 KP since mid-2023. Previously, he was deputy commander of the 5th U.S. Army Corps, and commanded the Natovian JFTC Joint Forces Training Center in Bydgoszcz. 2 KP is designed to command modern tactical unions separated for land operations during crisis and war situations.

Prof. Kućma, the author of the Warsaw Uprising monuments in Warsaw and the Defenders of the Polish Post in Gdańsk, was honored for his work building cultural identity and perpetuating the most crucial national values in art.

The Federation of Regional Associations of Municipalities and Districts of Poland, chaired by Kazimierz Barczyk, is the largest nationwide local government organization, comprising in 20 regional associations of 1000 municipalities, powiats and voivodships. According to a long tradition, the winners' gala was held in the University Hall of Collegium Novum, the main typical building of the Jagiellonian University.