Lech Mażewski
Przegląd Konstytucyjny, Numer 3 (2019), 2019, s. 5 - 32
The method of appointment and responsibilities of the President of the Republic of Poland in the perspective of emergence of the Prime Minister’s government system
One should postulate far-reaching constitutional changes in terms of the political position and competences of the President of the Republic of Poland but without undermining the way he has been appointed so far. For now, all those rules must remain as they were decided on 27th September 1990. Only this way a non-conflict governance structure can be created in Poland. After some time, when this model of exercising public authority will became established, one can return to the question of how to elect the President of the Republic of Poland. In short, the efforts visible both in the Constitutional Act of 17th October 1992 and the Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 2nd April 1997, aimed at evolutionary limiting the scope of competences of the head of state, need to be continued.
Even if the mode of election of the President of the Republic of Poland cannot be changed at this time, at least a few de lege ferenda postulates can be formulated that would lessen the political effects of universal presidential elections, bringing us closer to the emergence of the Prime Minister’s government system. These postulates concerns, inter alia, lowering the majority needed to reject the presidential legislative veto, resigning from the legislative initiative on amending the Constitution, specifying the procedure for ratifying and terminating international agreements, limiting independence in conducting foreign policy, and some restrictions on the nomination of certain categories of public officials.