Poland – Blackjack affair

In Poland, the government has been rocked by the so-called Blackjacj (or Blackjack) affair. There is information of the Polskie Radio site.

Allegedly (please note!), members of the ruling Civic Platform party lobbied on behalf of the gambling industry to stop proposed tax increases on betting. There is more detail here. So far, the scandal has costs the jobs of four ministers, the Interior Minister, the Justice Minister, the Sports Minister, and the deputy Economy Minister, as well as posts at the PM Chancellory, and the head of the Civic Platform’s parliamentary party.

The scandal is all the more important because it has a party political twist to it. The PM, Donald Tusk, accused the head of the Central Anticorruption Bureau (CAB) of acting politically in the affair. He has now been sacked from his post. However, President Kaczynski has backed the former head of the CAB. Remember that Poland is currently in a period of cohabitation.

Also, the events need to be seen in the context of next year’s presidential at which PM Tusk is almost certain to be a candidate. There is some evidence that the scandal has harmed the position of the Civic Platform. However, Tusk still seems to be the best placed candidate.

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