Mariusz Kamiński, former Polish Interior Minister, and Maciej Wąsik, his former number 2 in the portfolio, both from the Law and Justice (PiS) party, were arrested this Tuesday (9) during an inauguration ceremony for advisors that was taking place in the Presidential Palace of the European country.
Both Kamiński and Wąsik were sentenced in December to two years in prison for abuse of power after the country's Supreme Court reauthorized the opening of a 2007 case involving a corruption scandal during the administration of Deputy Prime Minister Andrzej Lepper (2006-2007).
In 2015, Kamiński and Wąsik were found guilty in the case, but received a presidential pardon provided by the country's current head of state, Andrzej Duda.
Kamiński and Wąsik are currently deputies in Poland, however, with their conviction in December and their arrest this Tuesday, both are expected to lose their positions.
The arrest of PiS deputies generated reactions in the Polish political sector. The country's current Interior Minister, Marcin Kierwiński, stated that they occurred because “everyone is equal before the law”, and that the police action was “in accordance with the order of the Supreme Court”.
Radosław Fogiel, who is a PiS deputy, criticized the arrests, calling them a “political provocation”.
The arrest of the parliamentarians increased tension between President Duda, who belongs to PiS, and the government, now led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who returned to office at the end of last year.
Earlier, Tusk accused Duda of trying to “obstruct justice” for inviting parliamentarians to a ceremony at the Presidential Palace on the day the court ordered their arrest.
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