POLAND / FILE: Political crisis deepens after secretly filmed meetings are aired on television

Poland's political crisis deepened on Wednesday (September 27) after television aired secretly filmed meetings that sparked calls on the prime minister to step down. The ruling conservatives of Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski are trying to build a new majority coalition after ditching their leftist partners Self-Defence last week in a row over the budget and a decision to send troops to Afghanistan. But their efforts suffered a blow when TVN television late on Tuesday (September 26) showed footage of Kaczynski's top aide discussing with an opposition MP what she wanted for switching sides. A small party regarded as possible kingmakers responded by suspending coalition talks with the governing Law and Justice. Law and Justice officials dismissed accusations of any wrongdoing and said Kaczynski, who came to power last year vowing to weed out corruption in the ex-communist European Union member, would not resign. "We are facing a giant political provocation. This provocation is aimed at the formation of a parliamentary majority which will support the government and its policy of political changes. It is very important to remember that the forces which stand behind this provocation want to stall the process of repairing the state," said Law and Justice Party official Marek Kuchcinski at a packed news conference on Wednesday. The fresh political turmoil follows anti-government protests in fellow EU newcomer Hungary, sparked by Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany's admission he lied to the electorate. In a report on new EU members on Wednesday, the World Bank warned that political uncertainty and fragmentation had allowed populists to gain influence in the region, hampering reform. TVN showed what it said were two meetings between Law and Justice deputy leader Adam Lipinski and Self-Defence MP Renata Beger, who has said she was considering backing the government. He appeared to hold out the prospect of a government post for Beger and also suggested possible financial help for internal party fines Self-Defence defectors may have to pay. Law and Justice needs the support of the Peasants' Party and some Self-Defence and independent MPs to secure a new majority. "To call this incident political corruption is curious," Lipinski said. "Negotiations like this have been made with other political groups forever. This makes the first big negotiations in this term of parliament, when Civic Platform was offered to share seats in the government, look like corruption. We have been talking to Civic Platform at that time and there were deals made, the Platform was demanding to have a majority," he added. Beger said she had agreed with TVN to film the meetings with Lipinski secretly. In one part, Lipinski asked her what she and other Self-Defence deputies expected for backing the government. In the second meeting, they discussed the penalty which Self-Defence says its deputies must pay if they quit the party. When Beger asked about the possibility of help in such a case, Lipinski hinted money could be taken from the parliament's budget. "After this incident I expect the government to step down, dissolving of parliament, snap elections. Only this can repair the country. This should lead to electing new honest members of parliament who will really take care of our country," Beger said on Wednesday. The political crisis in Poland began last week when, after weeks of bickering over the budget and plans to send more troops to bolster NATO forces in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Kaczynski fired his deputy Andrzej Lepper, Self-Defence's firebrand leader.

ITN Source | September 27, 2006

Tags:. .aimed. .gain. .suggested. .seats. .opposition