The Polish president, Andrzej Dudaannounced this Saturday that he has made use of his presidential veto to block the 2024 budgetswhich delves into the first dispute that confronts him with the new prime minister’s cabinet, Donald Tuskby public media reform.
“I have decided to veto the law on the budget for 2024, which includes 3,000 million zlotys (690 million euros) for public media,” said the president who is close to the ultra-conservative Law and Justice (PiS) on his X account (formerly Twitter).
“I cannot give consent to this given the flagrant violation of the Constitution and the principles of the democratic rule of law. First, the public media must be repaired in a reliable and legal manner,” he added.
After exhausting all legal deadlines and delay the transfer of powers from PiS to the new government coalition center-European after the October 15 elections, Duda has engaged in his first dispute with the new Executive, which took office just a few weeks ago.
In an attempt to purge the public media of positions related to ultraconservatives who governed for eight years, the new Minister of Culture, Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz, dismissed this week the boards of directors of the public television (TVP), the official news agency (PAP) and the state radio (RP) of Poland.
Furthermore, during the parliamentary session prior to these dismissals, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that In the next general budgets of the State, funds will not be allocated to TVP.
“I cannot agree with this. This is anarchy,” Duda stressed the day that decision was known.
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During the legislatures in which Law and Justice governed, the accusations against the editorial line of state mediawho were accused of playing a propaganda role favorable to the Government and openly hostile towards the opposition and other political rivals.
The upper house of Parliament or Sejm can override a presidential veto with a three-fifths majority, but the centrist coalition formed by the Citizen Platform (PO), Tercería Vía and Izquierda parties only controls 248 of the 460 seats.