The decision of the Chamber of Extraordinary Control regarding the National Electoral Commission’s resolution will not be a ruling of an independent court, says a Supreme Court judge.
"For me, it is obvious—the National Electoral Commission's resolution will be overturned. Can a body whose decisions can be predicted under such circumstances be considered an independent court?" said a judge from the Supreme Court's Criminal Chamber in an interview with Onet.
Politicians from the Law and Justice party (PiS), even before the official announcement from the National Electoral Commission, stated that they would immediately appeal this decision to the Supreme Court. The case will be heard by the Chamber of Extraordinary Control and Public Affairs—a new chamber of the Supreme Court established by PiS in 2018. This chamber is composed exclusively of so-called “neo-judges,” individuals appointed through a process involving the National Council of the Judiciary, which was restructured by PiS in 2017 under politicized conditions. Consequently, both the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) have already ruled that this chamber does not constitute an independent and impartial tribunal.
Onet published an interview with Judge Jarosław Matras from the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court.
“Lawyers who have followed the establishment of this chamber, the conditions under which it was created, and the recruitment process can predict what its decision will be. For me, it is obvious—the resolution of the National Electoral Commission will be overturned. Can a body whose decisions under such circumstances can be predicted be considered an independent court? The answer is obvious,” said the judge.
As an example of predictable rulings favorable to the Law and Justice party, Jarosław Matras pointed to the cases involving the immunities of Maciej Wąsik and Mariusz Kamiński.
Journalist Magdalena Gałczyńska asked what the Minister of Finance, who is ultimately responsible for disbursing funds from the subsidies, should do.
“I do not want to answer that question; I would not want to, nor do I intend to be in the shoes of the Minister of Finance. But one thing is certain—after the decision of the Chamber of Extraordinary Control, which will most likely be favorable to PiS, we will not be dealing with a court ruling, but rather with a ritualized theater. What this chamber will produce will not be a Supreme Court ruling,” responded Judge Matras.
The above text by Dominika Sitnicka was published on OKO.press on August 31, 2024.