Pulling the Strings

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Thousands of people protested in the Polish capital Warsaw over the weekend, as part of an anti-government rally organized by the conservative opposition to boost support for next year’s presidential election, the Associated Press reported.

The opposition Law and Justice Party (PiS) and its supporters gathered in front of the Ministry of Justice to criticize the pro-European Union administration of Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski accused Tusk of acting against Poland’s national interests and breaking laws. He cited the ongoing probes into mismanagement and corruption during the PiS administration between 2015 and 2023.

However, Poland has charged more than 60 officials from the former PiS government with offenses related to misuse of funds, while more than 100 others are under investigation, Reuters reported earlier this month.

Tusk said the government was conducting further investigations, with 200 tax inspectors investigating 90 units in 17 ministries, and that the scale of potential irregularities was estimated by the tax office to total as much as $25.23 billion.

The PiS lost power to Tusk’s Civic Platform party in last year’s parliamentary elections. Still, the opposition wields influence through President Andrzej Duda, an ally of Kaczynski, who has been blocking government legislation.

Duda’s second and final term ends in August 2025.