Poland’s nationalist-controlled parliament on Friday adopted a controversial law setting up a commission to investigate “the Russian influence” in the country, an event described as a “constitutional coup” by the opposition, a few months before the autumn parliamentary elections.

The head of the commission will be appointed by the Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki. Its members will not bear any responsibility for the decisions they make.

For the law to be put into effect, it will have to be ratified by Polish President Andrzej Duda, who is from the ruling party but has not yet expressed an opinion on the matter.

This committee will consist of nine members chosen by the Lower House and will be able to decide whether or not the person under investigation had “conferred” to Russia between 2007-2022, and issue convictions. No appeal is provided for its decisions, except for possible irregularities related to the commission’s operation.

Persons found guilty may be barred from holding public office connected with public finance or intelligence services for 10 years to “prevent them from acting again under Russian influence, to the detriment of the interests of the Republic of Poland”.

Critics of the law believe that the formation of this commission violates the constitutional principle of the separation of powers (political from judicial) since this nine-member body will act simultaneously as a prosecutor and as a court. The opposition refuses to participate in the work of the committee. He calls the law ‘lex Tusk’, after centrist opposition leader Donald Tusk, former prime minister between 2007-14 and then president of the European Council, who is now the government’s ‘black sheep’ .

According to the opposition and many commentators, the law is aimed at undermining political opponents of the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party ahead of parliamentary elections and preventing Tusk and others from opposing camps from taking positions of responsibility in the event that they win.
In early May, the bill was rejected by the opposition-controlled Senate, but the nationalist majority managed to pass it, with a second vote in the Lower House today. It was approved by a vote of 234 to 219.

During the vote in the Senate, independent senator Krzysztof Kwiatkowski said the bill “overturns the principles of Western civilization based on respect for laws: it’s like a bunch of Huns decided to make a law.” Other senators called the law a “witch hunt” and a “puppet court.”