In a letter addressed to the head of the Tribunal, judge Andrzej Rzepliński, President Duda admitted that the Polish constitution can be open to interpretation, but added: “Control of the constitutionality of the law should be based on clear and legible patterns, resulting from the text of the constitution itself.”
“One of the guarantees of independence is entrusted to the Sejm [the lower house of parliament] to elect the judges of the Constitutional Court. This principle is a direct result of the principle of governing by the nation through its representatives, the principles while underlie the system of the [Polish] Republic,” the letter said.
Earlier this week it was announced that the president would swear in a new judge to the tribunal, despite controversy surrounding the election.
A parliamentary ballot in which deputies approved the choice of a new judge - who is backed by the governing Law and Justice (PiS) party - has sparked a row.
MP Małgorzata Zwiercan was ejected from the caucus of Poland’s opposition Kukiz'15 grouping after she voted for the judge on behalf of party colleague Kornel Morawiecki.
Meanwhile, political veteran Morawiecki, the father of Polish Development Minister and Deputy PM Mateusz Morawiecki, decided himself to leave the Kukiz'15 parliamentary club.
The District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw has launched an preliminary investigation into the way the ballot was carried out. Opposition MPs said they had alerted the Speaker of parliament that there had been an irregularity during the ballot, adding that they wanted a new vote.
Political stalemate
Poland is locked in a political stalemate after the conservative Law and Justice party, which came to power in October, introduced sweeping reforms to the Constitutional Tribunal and other institutions.
The European Parliament recently passed a resolution warning that the “effective paralysis” of Poland's Constitutional Tribunal endangers the rule of law, democracy and human rights.
The tribunal has itself rejected PiS-backed changes to the way it functions. PiS, in turn, has refused to recognise that ruling by the tribunal, claiming it is invalid. Critics say the PiS-backed changes were designed to paralyse the tribunal, which decides whether laws passed by parliament are in keeping with the Polish constitution.
PiS has argued it is unfair that a tribunal with a majority of judges appointed under the previous parliament should be able to scupper flagship policies for which the party secured a mandate in democratic elections. (rg)