Poland’s ruling party PiS has imposed strict new rules requiring all media appearances to be approved by its press office, with disciplinary consequences for violations.
New Media Rules
The leadership of Law and Justice (PiS) sent an internal message to parliamentarians with a clear directive: an end to independent media arrangements and statements deviating from the official party line. According to the content of the communication published by Interia, some politicians have been arranging media appearances outside the press office and speaking in ways contrary to the group’s position.
“In connection with the fact that some members of our party, outside the press office, are arranging media appearances and speaking in ways inconsistent with party positions, we inform that as of today, in the case of arrangements outside the press office or deviations from the party line, disciplinary consequences will be drawn. There are no exceptions to this rule” – states the message quoted by Interia. The document was signed by club leader Mariusz Błaszczak and party spokesman Rafał Bochenek.
Press Office Control
Until now, MPs – at least formally – had to inform leadership about planned media appearances. In practice, they didn’t always do so. Now the rules are clear: only the PiS press office will decide who represents the party on radio, television, or the internet. The change is an attempt to discipline those politicians who have recently appeared in the media more often with their own interpretations of the party’s position.
Connection to Morawiecki Faction
According to Interia’s findings, the new guidelines are related to the activity of the environment around former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. Tensions also appear around MEP Michał Dworczyk, a close collaborator of Morawieckiego, who recently reportedly heard accusations of “deviating from the party line” and “crossing the border.” He also did not appear at the PiS convention dedicated to defense in Stalowa Wola.
Party Internal Struggles
The new instruction fits into the next stage of tensions within the party. In PiS, a dispute has been going on for weeks between supporters of Mateusz Morawiecki and his opponents. After President Jarosław Kaczyński’s announcement that in March he will indicate a candidate for prime minister, emotions have clearly risen. Unofficial information suggests that Morawiecki is not today the president’s favorite for this role. Meanwhile, the former prime minister is actively building his position in the region – meeting with activists and organizing political events.
A few weeks ago, media also reported that Morawiecki wants to use his country tour to test support for himself before potentially leaving the party and forming his own group. However, PiS politicians deny this version. Michał Dworczyk on Polish Radio stated that Morawiecki “is not going anywhere.”
