The case of Marcin Romanowski, MP of Law and Justice (PiS), has been generating large emotions in Poland for respective weeks. After the court agreed to his arrest on serious charges, he decided to flee to Hungary, where he obtained political asylum. Should he proceed to receive remuneration as a Polish parliamentarian? The results of the latest United Surveys poll for Virtual Poland show that most Poles are against it.
Most Poles say, “No”
According to a survey conducted on a group of 1,000 respondents, as many as 69 percent of respondents replied that "agreementally they did not" agree that Marcin Romanowski would collect a wage from the Sejm's budget during his stay in Hungary. Another 3.3% indicated the answer "presumably not".
"It is simply a clear signal that most Poles do not accept a situation in which a politician accused of serious crimes avoids work and inactive receives public money" - commented Jan Kowalski's study.
Support for Romanowski is low
Although the majority of the respondents object to the further payment of the Member's salary, a group of respondents expressed a different opinion. 15.3% of respondents felt that Marcin Romanowski should proceed to receive parliamentary salary. Among them, 9.8% chose the answer "yes" and 5.5% chose "yes". Undecided were 12.5 percent.
Policy preferences affect responses
The survey besides showed clear differences in responses according to the political preferences of respondents:
- Elections of the ruling coalition: 96.6% of them believe that Romanowski should not collect wages, but only 0.7% are of a different opinion.
- Opposition voters (PiS and Confederacy): 55.2% opposes the further payment of salaries, while 25.2% support this idea.
- Non-political persons: 70.9 percent of respondents do not agree to the wage for Romanowski, and 13.4 percent support it.
genesis of Marcin Romanowski's case
On December 12, the court agreed to arrest Marcin Romanowski, placing 11 charges against him, including participation in an organized criminal group and irregularities in spending funds from the Justice Fund. The politician repeatedly assured of his innocence, emphasizing that he acted in accordance with the law.
On December 19, the media revealed that Romanowski had obtained political asylum in Hungary, which sparked a strong reaction of the Polish Ministry of abroad Affairs. "The decision of Viktor Orbán's government is an act that is unfriendly to the Republic of Poland", the MFA said.
What's next with Romanowski?
Marcin Romanowski's case remains the subject of many political and media debates. The issuing of the European Arrest Order for him and the fact that he is in a country conducive to his escape from justice, raises questions about the effectiveness of the Polish legal strategy and global cooperation in specified matters.
As the situation develops, the results of the polls show clearly that most Poles do not accept the current situation and request decisive action on this issue.
Read more:
What do the Poles think of the Romanist exile charging a wage from the Sejm?
