President Duda Proposes Changes To Controversial Investigative Commission

Polish President Andrzej Duda has offered concessions on the controversial investigative commission created to probe Russian political influence in the country after the initiative drew widespread criticism from opposition parties, Poland's legal community and foreign partners.

• Duda says in a statement that he still supports the bill establishing the commission and believes that there is a need to investigate Russian influence in Poland. He denies allegations that the commission would be unconstitutional and says that he would like senior officials from the previous administration to testify to the panel.
• The President says that he "regrets" that the bill was passed so late, which allows critics to suggest that it has any connection with the upcoming parliamentary election. He argues that it should have been passed a long time ago and must be implemented as soon as possible.
• Duda says that he prepared amendments to the bill and will table them to parliament today in order to address major controversies. He says that the commission should not involve any members of parliament and should be stripped off the power to impose penalties, while the appeal procedure should be strengthened.
• Duda explains that the proposed amendments would effectively limit the commission's powers to issuing resolutions that a given person acted under Russian influence and cannot be trusted to hold public office in good faith. He notes that the proceedings of the commission will be transparent and publicly available.