At 10:00 AM, the parliamentary committee investigating VAT fraud will question former Finance Minister Jacek Rostowski. 

Also at 10:00 AM, at the Presidential Palace, President Andrzej Duda will appoint new members to the Social Dialogue Council. At noon, the Presidential Couple will attend the Gala "100 Monuments of History for the Centennial of Regaining Independence," and at 5:00 PM, they will participate in the 22nd Christmas Food Drive in Zielonka.

At 10:00 AM, Minister Witold Bańka will summarize his three years at the Ministry of Sport. The Bronisław Komorowski Institute will also assess the governance of the Law and Justice party, particularly in foreign policy, at a debate organized at 2:00 PM.

At 10:00 AM, the Mazovian Voivode, Zdzisław Sipiera, will address a press briefing regarding the Supreme Administrative Court's ruling, which overturned most decisions on the decommunization of Warsaw streets. At 11:00 AM, the Mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski, has scheduled a press conference on the end of the cycling season.

At 5:00 PM, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki will participate in the gala for the "100 for 100" scholarship program named after Halina Konopacka and Ignacy Matuszewski.

- We are truly witnessing Minister Ziobro's downfall, because he might still be around for a month, perhaps half a year, all at the mercy of President Kaczyński, but this man has completely lost his moral legitimacy to be the Minister of Justice. I don't know how he will appear at prosecutors' meetings or on television next. After what has happened in recent days - stated Tomasz Siemoniak in an interview with Konrad Piasecki on TVN24's "Rozmowa Piaseckiego". - This statement [about Kwaśniak's beating] is a disgrace to the Minister of Justice. He should never have said such a thing, because it justifies what happened - added the Civic Platform politician.

- There is no humiliation in this. It so happened that in last week's move by the Civic Platform, two MPs returned who had moved to Nowoczesna two years ago. The Civic Platform was in crisis, in trouble then, while Nowoczesna was on the [rising] wave. Did anyone accuse Nowoczesna of humiliation? This is what happens in politics. I trust Grzegorz Schetyna and Katarzyna Lubnauer - they met several times last week - that they will lead to an agreement, to a conclusion. This situation serves no one, and I hope they can reach an understanding. It wasn't for nothing that they drove thousands of kilometers together in a car as leaders, co-leaders with Barbara Nowacka, just to fail to reach an understanding now. I am convinced that the outcome will be positive - stated Tomasz Siemoniak in an interview with Konrad Piasecki on TVN24's "Rozmowa Piaseckiego".

“In Kamila [Gasiuk-Pihowicz]'s case, I have the impression that a lack of experience and a certain impatience played a role. A feeling that something might slip away from her, that some opportunity or chance might not be repeated. At a moment when there is no doubt for me that what built the strength of Civic Coalition, what caused KO to achieve a better result than anyone, including the media and experts, expected, was that we were autonomous, that we were able to cooperate with each other” - said Katarzyna Lubnauer, the leader of Nowoczesna, during the morning broadcast on Radio TOK FM in conversation with Dominika Wielowieyska.

“Kamila, in her actions, there were many platitudes, many such words, but I have the impression that she acted because she wanted something. I wasn't present at those conversations, so I don't know exactly what it was about. I don't know the agreements between her and Civic Platform, but I have no doubt that this whole story didn't hold together” - she added. 

“We are doing everything to make this happen [for the Modern club in the Sejm to survive]. Being a club gives many privileges, which is why I did not want a merger of clubs. There is no doubt that we are talking with PSL. Everyone knows this. There is no decision yet” – said the leader of Modern, Katarzyna Lubnauer, during the Morning broadcast on TOK FM radio in a conversation with Dominika Wielowieyska.

- No one pulled them out, they left on their own, they made their own decision. Grzegorz Schetyna is a successful opposition leader, but he is not omnipotent. He cannot tell a politician from another party: do this or that. I think we are all drawing conclusions from this situation, and Civic Coalition (KO) will emerge from this strengthened in a few weeks - stated Tomasz Siemoniak in an interview with Konrad Piasecki on TVN24's "Rozmowa Piaseckiego".

"I don't know that, there are no lists for the European Parliament. There are very many serious politicians willing to run. No one here has any guarantees. Of course, it is not predetermined" - stated Tomasz Siemoniak in an interview with Konrad Piasecki on TVN24's "Rozmowa Piaseckiego".

- It is consistent [the amendment to the Supreme Court Act with the original draft]. I understand that you are most interested in the issue of reversing the retirement. Yes, it is consistent, because the idea of amending the Supreme Court Act was primarily to establish two new chambers in the Supreme Court: a disciplinary chamber and an extraordinary appeal chamber, and these two chambers were established, judges were appointed to these chambers, the chambers are functioning, they are starting their work, they are getting going, and this was the most important issue regarding the amendment to the Supreme Court Act, and what interested us the most is happening - stated Błażej Spychalski in an interview with Beata Michniewicz on "Trójka's Political Salon".

- Why so long? There is a constitutional deadline of 21 days. Today, it seems, only 14 days have passed. The decision will be made soon, as there are 7 days left at most to make a decision - added the presidential spokesperson.

- It seems that quite recently Marshal Mazurek also confirmed the President's words [regarding the presidential election]. We'll see. Today, we are not thinking about the presidential election. It's still 1.5 years away. That's a lot of time. There's a lot of current work to be done for our country - stated Błażej Spychalski in an interview with Beata Michniewicz on 'Trójka's Political Salon'.

- The President [Duda] promised, made such a promise after the presidential election, once he became president, that districts he had not visited during the election campaign would be successively visited during his presidency. Please remember that there are well over 300 districts, and there are - it seems - fewer than 30 districts left to visit - stated Błażej Spychalski in an interview with Beata Michniewicz on "Trójka's Political Salon". As the presidential spokesperson emphasized, there are many districts in Poland that no president has visited since 1989.

- A lot indicates that we will summon Donald Tusk before the [VAT] investigative committee, but this decision has not yet been made. Further documents make the former prime minister's summons highly probable. It needs to be checked whether he had knowledge, whether he was informed, or whether he took any interest in this matter at all – stated Marcin Horała in an interview with Piotr Witwicki on Polsat News' "Polityczne Graffiti". 

When asked if he would be summoned at the end, the committee's chairman replied: - Probably at the end of the committee's work to verify the other information gathered during its proceedings. Asked about Janusz Palikot, he stated: - His role here was essentially different, as he was the chairman of the committee. He did not hold an official position. Will his testimony contribute anything? I assess it as fifty-fifty.

“There was talk, discussion about the problems that MPs perceive. It was a round of statements from MPs, senators, and references to these statements by the party leadership, Mr. Chairman Kaczyński, Mr. Prime Minister. There was talk about the prevailing moods, about voter expectations” – Minister Jacek Sasin reported in an interview with Radio Jedynka about the away session of the PiS parliamentary club.

“We are satisfied with the results of the local government elections. It's hard to conduct reckonings when there's an evident success” – he added.

“The coming months are a period when we will want to present our intentions for the next term. We don't want to win the elections just to extend our power, but we want this power to be extended for a reason. To implement further ideas for Poland. The period that is largely behind us, i.e., 3 years of this term, was a time when we wanted to reach the most needy groups in Polish society, Polish families who were left behind, and seniors. This is where we directed our social programs. At present, we are focusing on accelerated economic growth and on ensuring that Poles have more money in their pockets. This is what lies ahead of us. Our proposals will also serve this purpose” - said Minister Jacek Sasin on the program I of Polish Radio. 

- The first, though likely not last [interrogation] of former Finance Minister Jacek Rostowski. At today's session, we will undoubtedly ask the minister about all those threads that have already emerged in the investigative committee, such as how the work on laws changing the tax system proceeded and who participated, what was the involvement of the tax business - stated Marcin Horała at a briefing in the Sejm.

- Tomorrow's hearing of Krzysztof Kwiatkowski has been cancelled because the constitutional accountability committee, where Mr. Kwiatkowski's case is being considered, is meeting on the same day. He has the right to participate in this session, so we will likely reschedule this hearing for next year - stated Marcin Horała during a briefing in the Sejm.

- Minister Rostowski should have appeared before the investigation committee long ago. He himself often expressed his readiness to testify before the investigation committee, however, before the local government elections, the chairman arbitrarily changed the decision, and Minister Rostowski will be questioned only today - stated Zbigniew Konwiński at a briefing in the Sejm. He added:

"A few days ago, the majority of the committee voted to report Minister Rostowski to the prosecutor's office as well, based mainly on the testimony of minister Chojna-Duch. Today, I am filing a report with the prosecutor's office in connection with former minister Chojna-Duch's false testimony before the investigation committee. She lied at least a dozen times when talking about the 30% sanction and her role in abolishing the 30% sanction. Her lie is confirmed by specific documents in the committee's possession. She also lied when she said she did not meet with prof. Modzelewski at the ministry. There is a note in the committee's files mentioning such a meeting and legislative changes that Ms. Chojna-Duch also recommended to introduce based on prof. Modzelewski's recommendations"

- Last week, the Civic Coalition formula was officially concluded. They even named themselves PO Civic Coalition. A formula where there is a large partner and this large partner, right after the party, swallows the smaller partner or tears off a piece of its body, is not an offer that can be attractive to anyone. The formula must be: a broad front of opposition parties, each retaining its identity. There cannot be the dominance of one party, because it ends with only Schetyna left in the picture. The European Parliament elections offer a chance for such a formula. There are many sensible people: Janusz Lewandowski, Leszek Miller, Robert Biedroń, Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus - stated Ryszard Petru in an interview with Marek Kacprzak on the WP program "Tłit".

- Kamila Gasiuk-Pihowicz is not a credible political figure, and few will back her. Few will want to trust her. This is no longer my concern. It disgusts politics. If betrayal, of someone being reworked, is to be a virtue, then such politics have no future. Then let's not be surprised that Poles value politicians so lowly - Ryszard Petru stated in an interview with Marek Kacprzak on the WP program "Tłit". 

- I can count money, I raised money for the campaign. Michał Pihowicz made a wrong transfer. As long as I was in Nowoczesna, the loan installments were paid. When someone takes over a company, they take over everything good and everything bad. You had to have a plan on how to pay them off. If someone doesn't have it, they are not suitable to be a leader - stated Ryszard Petru in an interview with Marek Kacprzak on the WP program "Tłit". 

– In a Western country, it is unthinkable that the Prime Minister of a country would dance at this priest's party. It was ridiculous, embarrassing. It seems that Father Rydzyk has a large part of PiS in his grip – stated Ryszard Petru in an interview with Marek Kacprzak on the WP program "Tłit".

“I have watched and read the initial parts of [Deputy Minister Chojna-Duch's testimony]. It seems to me that in many places, the minister's memory has failed her. I think, generally speaking, that where the testimony is true, it is not true that it is in any way incriminating, and where, according to PiS politicians, it would be incriminating, then it is either a gigantic overinterpretation or it is not true” - said former minister, Jan Vincent Rostowski, before his hearing by the parliamentary committee investigating VAT fraud.

It is completely unacceptable to claim that the VAT gap in the years 2008-2015 amounted to PLN 300 billion. Secondly, that the VAT gap is due to fraud, and particularly organized fraud. Thirdly, that the VAT gap increased under the PO government. Fourthly, that the PO government directed, permitted, or in any way tolerated VAT fraud. And it is also unacceptable and untrue to claim that the VAT situation improved after 2015 as a result of the PiS government's actions. All these claims are false, which I intend to demonstrate. The intensity of such statements in recent weeks has only a political purpose, namely to cover up the bribery scandal involving the Chairman of the KNF, the highest financial supervisor of the state – stated Jacek Rostowski during his hearing by the parliamentary committee investigating VAT fraud.

- The VAT gap certainly exists everywhere and always where VAT has been introduced, as professor Modzelewski, a witness and expert for PiS, also mentioned. The VAT gap is the difference between the theoretically due VAT amount in the entire economy and the actual VAT revenues. Therefore, every time someone provides us with a service or sells us a good and we don't receive a fiscal receipt, we contribute to the VAT gap. It is a mistake to claim that the VAT gap is solely about fraud, as Minister Kotecki stated and explained before the commission. It is an additional mistake to claim that the VAT gap consists of organized carousel fraud, as MP Kaczyński said on Friday. The problem, or rather the real question, is not whether there is a VAT gap, but whether this VAT gap has increased or decreased, and when it has increased or decreased - stated Jacek Rostowski during his hearing by the parliamentary committee investigating VAT fraud.

- This commission is conducted completely differently and much better than another - said Jacek Rostowski to Marcin Horała during questioning by the parliamentary committee investigating VAT fraud.

– Blaming the Civic Platform for the abolition of the 30% sanction is… I'm looking for a milder word than absurd… The abolition of the 30% sanction was included in a bill prepared by the Finance Minister in the PiS government, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Zyta Gilowska in 2006. This bill was adopted by the PiS government in June 2006 – stated Jacek Rostowski during his hearing by the parliamentary committee investigating VAT fraud.

– Our bill was voted on by the Sejm in the summer of 2008 and included the abolition of this sanction. Of course, you should know that all PiS MPs present in the chamber voted for it, including MP Kaczyński and MP Szydło – he added.

- I am pleased with the PSL's stance. I am pleased that they want to help us. It is evident that they want to cooperate with us. It seems to me that this stems from the fact that the PSL also had some difficulties maintaining its club at one point. We tried very hard to help them then, meaning we also said that if necessary, we would try to help with the assistance of one of our MPs. I know that President Władysław Kosiniak Kamysz is a very responsible politician who is also aware of his responsibility for the grouping (...) All of this leads to us talking - stated Katarzyna Lubnauer in an interview with Piotr Maślak on Gazeta.pl.

- I disagree with the statement that it is good for the VAT gap, understood as any fraud, let alone organized fraud like VAT carousels, to be growing in bad times. Of course not. That is clear. I am convinced that this was not Minister Kotecki's intention - stated Jacek Rostowski during his hearing by the parliamentary committee investigating VAT fraud.

- The suggestion that anyone anywhere in the Polish government, let alone in the Ministry of Finance, could be happy that VAT fraud is increasing is absolutely untrue and slanderous - continued the former Minister of Finance.

- Meetings at Minister Nowak's place – the goal was for both sides to explain their positions to each other, so they would understand the other side. No decisions were made there – stated Jacek Rostowski during his interrogation by the parliamentary committee investigating VAT fraud.

The Sejm is ready for the Christmas Eve wafer ceremony, scheduled for this Friday at 11:00 AM – during a break between votes on the 2019 budget bill.

- I must say that this commission is conducted much more substantively, seriously, calmly [than the Amber Gold investigative commission] and I hope that as a result of hearings like this one, we will get closer to the truth - stated Jacek Rostowski during a conversation with journalists in the Sejm.

- That's nonsense, of course. [Sławomir Nowak] was not an informal finance minister - he added.

“The recent statements by representatives of the PiS government, Minister Zbigniew Ziobro and Deputy Minister Patryk Jaki, expose the essence of PiS policy, which consists of this government, this party creating a peculiar, corruption-party system that parasitizes on the institutions of the Polish state, creating a structure, an octopus, that entwines the most important state institutions, allowing for the siphoning of funds from the banking system, the SKOK system, while simultaneously ensuring impunity for representatives of this government. Today, the Prosecutor General and Minister of Justice stands on the side of criminals and gangsters, not in defense of state representatives who fought against criminals and gangsters” – said PO spokesperson Jan Grabiec at a press conference in the Sejm.

“We expect Minister Ziobro to explain to the MPs his actions, taken and previously taken, in the context of the National SKOK, what actions the National SKOK took, and the actions that were taken against Senator Bierecki. We expect all of this at the next session of the Sejm. Today, our motion has been submitted for Minister Ziobro to explain all the details of these matters to us” – said Marta Golbik.

“Someone once promised Poles that there would be a strong state that would chase thieves and protect ordinary people. And now we have a simple picture. PiS has created a strong state that protects bandits and pursues honest people” – added Jarosław Urbaniak.

https://twitter.com/MorawieckiM/status/1072092638235500544

"Minister Rostowski has engaged in a kind of mental Polexit. Based on a report by his deputy at the Ministry of Finance, prepared for the Civic Institute – an organization founded by Civic Platform – he is undermining European Commission reports, undermining all existing reports, undermining GUS data, analysts, and experts," commented Marcin Horała of PiS, the chairman of the VAT committee, on Jan Vincent Rostowski's hearing.

"As soon as the committee managed to move on to detailed questions, requests for breaks were very quickly made to prolong the session," he added.

„We will certainly not exhaust [today's] questions. I said this morning that this is definitely not the minister's last hearing, and that certainly towards the end of the commission's work, a summarizing one, confronting him with the entire body of evidence, I am now leaning towards the minister being a more frequent guest. I myself have exhausted one-third of the questions, and among the PiS MPs, we have divided the topics” - said the chairman of the investigative commission for VAT fraud, Marcin Horała from PiS, in an interview with journalists in the Sejm.

„I am glad that the court has confirmed what we have been saying for a long time, that decisions regarding street name changes are within the purview of the councillors of the Capital City of Warsaw Council and that the governor cannot decide for the local government in such important matters. This is very important. We see that the government wants to seize more and more prerogatives that belong to local governments. This is an example that you cannot take shortcuts and you cannot replace local government officials in making decisions. The Warsaw Council decided on the decommunization of streets where it was clear - according to the councillors - that a given name could contribute, for example, to the propagation of a totalitarian system, but they decided that in the case of other streets, there was no such problem. I will talk to the councillors. Now the question is to decide which names will revert to their previous state. Most will revert to their previous state, but we will discuss this with the councillors,” – said the Mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski, at a press conference.  

Compared to the previous survey, PiS lost 1 percentage point, while PO gained 3 points. Kukiz'15 and SLD each lost 1 percentage point, and PSL's ratings remained unchanged.

https://twitter.com/CBOS_Info/status/1072127604352843777

https://twitter.com/SchetynadlaPO/status/1072154981531312128

The Chancellery of the Prime Minister (KPRM) has released a new video. The clip, shared on Twitter by the official account of the Prime Minister of Poland, is titled "Working Together for Poland." The accompanying tweet links to a video on the platform, suggesting it's a visual message from the government.

The specific content and message of the video would need to be viewed to provide a detailed analysis of its political implications. However, the title itself suggests a theme of national unity and collaborative effort towards improving Poland.

The link provided is: https://twitter.com/premierrp/status/1072159997776273408?s=12

- In my opinion, [Civic Coalition] has been destroyed; it is being consumed. It's still functioning, but what Grzegorz Schetyna and Platforma did last week, formally carried out by Ms. Gasiuk-Pihowicz, I don't believe she suddenly came up with this idea herself and moved with a group of MPs. Such things don't happen by chance. There are rumors she was offered a second spot in the European Parliament, which is a form of political corruption - stated Ryszard Petru in an interview with Dorota Gawryluk on Polsat News' "Wydarzenia i opinie" (Events and Opinions).

- These talks will be ongoing in January-February 2019 [year]. These will be talks with the European Parliament elections in mind, and in my opinion, there are two options. Everyone goes separately or all together in a broad pro-European bloc formula - stated Ryszard Petru in an interview with Dorota Gawryluk on "Events and Opinions" Polsat News.

- There were many surprising declarations today. However, the most surprising was the one at the beginning, stating that the VAT gap didn't actually exist and that it wasn't really a problem. Minister [Jacek Rostowski] performed an intellectual Polexit, because he undermined EC reports - stated Marcin Horała in an interview with Michał Adamczyk on TVP Info's "Gość Wiadomości".

"The local government election results are a bad omen for PiS. Voters in large, small, and medium-sized cities most often turn out for European elections. One can expect that PiS's poor performance in cities will translate to a poor result in the European Parliament elections," stated former President Bronisław Komorowski in an interview with Monika Olejnik on TVN24's "Kropka nad i" (The Dot on the i).

“It is visible that the elections are approaching and various politicians from different internal factions within PiS want to confirm that they have fulfilled their election promises. They either exert pressure, organize internal pressure, or simply talk outwardly so that people hear that on this issue, which was important to them, he is still active. And PiS has shown a few times that before elections it can calm down, show a more cultural face, politer, less insulting to people, less radical, but they are the same people. One can expect that after the elections they will be the same as Antoni Macierewicz again, with "treacherous faces" or "second-class" people. This group doesn't change its views easily” - said former president Bronisław Komorowski in an interview with Monika Olejnik on "Kropka nad i" on TVN24.

“There hasn’t been such a conversation [about running for the European Parliament]. I think completely new people should run, and there is a need for generational change. I am willing to support, and I do support, the democratic opposition” – said former President Bronisław Komorowski in an interview with Monika Olejnik on the program “Kropka nad i” on TVN24.

“There is no reason for me to declare myself for one side, another, or a third, because the topic doesn't exist” – he added.

„Law and Justice fears Donald Tusk’s return to Polish politics. Secondly, it would be good if Donald Tusk decided, although I think he will weigh this decision very carefully. We are all aware that the presidential election will be the last in a series of elections and will be somewhat a derivative of what happens in the European Parliament and parliamentary elections. It will be a bit of a finale for all elections. Personally, I think Donald Tusk will likely consider his own chances. He will probably try to build them, and I think he is already doing so at the moment, but he will likely make the final decision by observing the election results” - said former president Bronisław Komorowski in an interview with Monika Olejnik on „Kropka nad i” on TVN24.

“I think [Schetyna] isn’t devouring [Nowoczesna]. I haven’t heard any accusation from anyone that this was a diversion organized by PO. It’s hard to stop MPs if they want to switch. I would urge both environments to integrate faster and to oppose the harmful tendency of dividing and creating conflict between both parties, and to build better quality. This requires bold leadership from both sides” - said former president Bronisław Komorowski in a conversation with Monika Olejnik on the program “Kropka nad i” on TVN24.

-- LIVEBLOG 300POLITYKI: Horała: The most surprising declaration was at the beginning, that the VAT gap practically didn't exist. Petru on EP elections: There are two options. Everyone goes separately, or everyone together in the formula of a broad pro-European bloc. Petru: I don't believe Gasiuk-Pihowicz suddenly came up with this idea herself. "Working Together for Poland." The Chancellery of the Prime Minister publishes a new clip. Schetyna: My only answer to PiS's lawsuit against PO and Czuchnowski is: you will not intimidate us, you will not silence the opposition and the media, you will not hide the KNF affair and the mafia arrangement. CBOS: PiS slightly down, PO gains. https://300polityka.pl/live/2018/12/10/ ***** POLSAT EVENTS -- A ONE-MAN SHOW, THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION IS HOW IT HAPPENED THAT SUCH A LARGE VAT GAP WAS CREATED - Rymanowski. -- ARMED WITH REPORTS, HE CONVINCED THAT IT WAS A PiS FABRICATION - Agnieszka Milczarz. -- ACCORDING TO ROSTOWSKI, PiS WANTS TO COVER UP THE BRIBERY KNF AFFAIR - Milczarz. -- IT WASN'T ME WHO INVITED MINISTER NOWAK, BUT AT HIS REQUEST OUR TEAM WENT TO THE CHANCELLERY OF THE PRIME MINISTER - Elżbieta Chojna-Duch. -- BRITISH ELEGANCE OF THE MINISTER, EXTRAORDINARY - Chojna-Duch on JVR's words about her age. -- A WAVE OF SICK LEAVE, THEIR ACTION IS A COPY OF THE SO-CALLED DOG FLU - Rymanowski. -- THE GOVERNMENT IS CALMING DOWN, THERE WILL BE NO DRAMA WE EXPECT - Rymanowski on electricity prices. -- IN A YEAR, TENSION AROUND PRICES MAY RISE AGAIN - in the report. -- TRZASKOWSKI ANNOUNCES THAT THE LAST WORD WILL BELONG TO THE COUNCILORS, BUT CHAOS THREATENS THE CITY - Rymanowski. -- A POLITICAL DECISION TO RETURN TO COMMUNIST ROOTS - head of the PiS councilors' club. ***** TVN FAKTY -- HE WAS TO BE ELIMINATED AND SILENCED FOREVER, THEN CRIMINALS CAUGHT HIM, TODAY THE PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE OF ZBIGNIEW ZIOBRO - Justyna Pochanke: Bandits received his photo cut out of "Puls Biznesu" and waited in a rented car. Wojciech Kwaśniak was to be eliminated and silenced. TVN "Fakty" has obtained the indictment in the case of the severe beating of the former deputy head of KNF. -- MACIEJ KNAPIK ON THE INDICTMENT: There was no coincidence in this case. The attack was preceded by several weeks of preparation. A car and a telescopic metal baton, with which the attacker beat Kwaśniak, were purchased. The perpetrator was given a copy of "Puls Biznesu" with a photo of the KNF deputy head, as well as a card with his name and surname. The bandit also observed his victim in front of the KNF headquarters - according to the indictment in the case of Wojciech Kwaśniak's beating, which TVN "Fakty" obtained. According to investigators, the instigator of the beating was Piotr P., a former WSI officer and member of the supervisory board of SKOK Wołomin. -- PROSECUTOR: This was a person who, one might say, was one of the main organizers of this scheme related to the defrauding of loans and credits. -- KNAPIK ON DETAILS: Piotr P. allegedly hired a bandit nicknamed "Twardy" (Hardy). He reached him through his acquaintance from Wołomin, Krzysztof A., who was also allegedly involved in recruiting so-called straw men for loans defrauded from SKOK Wołomin. A fourth person, who later disposed of the car, is also implicated in the entire affair. -- PiS politician Piotr Uściński from Wołomin, who participated in SKOK Wołomin events, says that if anything was suspicious in those years, it was the extravagance of the Savings and Credit Union's bosses - Knapik. -- PIOTR UŚCIŃSKI: I felt incomprehension when I saw the very large expenses of SKOK Wołomin at various events. There was a lot of ostentation, which always made me wonder. -- KNAPIK FURTHER ON KWAŚNIAK AND SKOK WOŁOMIN: This ostentation was supposed to end precisely because of Kwaśniak, KNF controls, and the announcement of introducing a receivership. Two minutes of beating, two months of treatment. The beating was to cause "serious bodily harm," resulting in "complete or significant, permanent inability to work in the profession." Wojciech Kwaśniak is lucky to be alive. The indictment reads about at least several blows, four contusions to the head, a fracture of the parietal bone, and a fracture of a metacarpal bone. The whole situation lasted about two minutes. After those two minutes, there were two months of treatment. During the defense, Kwaśniak pulled the balaclava off the attacker's head. He wanted to reveal his face on surveillance cameras. -- JERZY NAUMANN, KWAŚNIAK'S LAWYER: He got scared and fled, and that probably saved Mr. Kwaśniak's life. -- WOJCIECH KWAŚNIAK: We received BOR protection, where I was transported in an armored car, followed by another car. In both, officers armed with long weapons were traveling. -- KNAPIK ON THE INVESTIGATION AND BANDITS: The perpetrators were arrested. The case has been ongoing since 2015. It was nearing completion, but the judge went on maternity leave, and the trial has to start from scratch. The instigator is in custody. The main perpetrator was released from custody and taken to a psychiatric hospital. - It's hard to say if he's playing for time or if he has indeed suddenly fallen ill mentally - assesses Jerzy Naumann. Of the other two suspects in the case, one is at liberty, and the other is in custody in Germany in a different case. -- ON JUSTICE ACCORDING TO ZBIGNIEW ZIOBRO: Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro stated that Wojciech Kwaśniak "may have been attacked precisely because the Financial Supervision Authority had been emboldening criminals for a long time." PiS politicians do not want to comment on their minister's statements, and the opposition accuses Ziobro of losing his moral mandate to hold office. -- JAKUB SOBIENIOWSKI ON ZIOBRO'S WORDS ABOUT EMBOLDENING. -- THIS IS CLEARLY TROUBLE FOR THE RULING PARTY - Sobieniowski. -- PLEASE DIRECT THESE QUESTIONS TO MINISTER ZIOBRO - Jadwiga Wiśniewska. -- I DON'T KNOW THOSE WORDS - Stanisław Karczewski. -- THESE EVASIONS STEM FROM HOW THE OPPOSITION INTERPRETS THOSE WORDS - Sobieniowski. -- HE STOOD ON THE SIDE OF THE CRIMINALS - Cezary Tomczyk. -- ZIOBRO'S FALL, HE LOST HIS MORAL LEGITIMACY - Tomasz Siemoniak. -- MANY COMPARE THESE WORDS TO WHAT ZIOBRO SAID IN 2007, WHEN THE NUMBER OF TRANSPLANTS DECREASED AND THE DOCTOR WAS NOT PROVEN GUILTY OF A CRIME - Sobieniowski. -- MANY IN PiS CONSIDERED THOSE WORDS THE CAUSE OF PiS'S ELECTORAL DEFEAT IN 2007 - Sobieniowski. -- AT THAT TIME, RADICALISM WAS TO ENSURE THE SUPPORT OF FATHER RYDZYK, AND TODAY IT IS TO MAINTAIN THAT SUPPORT, AND HE WILL NEED IT BECAUSE TODAY PiS WANTS TO MOVE TOWARDS THE CENTER, AND THE ACT ON THE INSTITUTE OF NATIONAL MEMORY AND THE MOTION TO THE CONSTITUTIONAL TRIBUNAL DO NOT FACILITATE THIS - Sobieniowski. -- ZIOBRO MANAGED TO CREATE HIS OWN BACKING, SO IT IS MORE DIFFICULT TO GET RID OF HIM THAN MACIEREWICZ - Sobieniowski. -- WAS VAT SLIPPING THROUGH THE PLATFORM'S FINGERS? - Pochanke: VAT parliamentary inquiry committee and Jacek Rostowski as a witness. The committee is investigating whether the previous government neglected the VAT issue and caused multi-billion losses to the state treasury. Was VAT slipping through the PO-PSL government's fingers? -- ROSTOWSKI IS ONE OF THE SYMBOLIC FIGURES OF THE PO GOVERNMENTS, AND A FEW HOURS OF HEARING WERE TO PROVE THAT UNDER HIS WATCH, A MAFIA DEFRAUDING TAXES WAS FLOURISHING - Krzysztof Skórzyński. -- ALL CRITICISM BOILS DOWN TO THE STATEMENT THAT ROSTOWSKI QUOTED TODAY - "THE THIEVING PLATFORM." -- A CHART OF THE VAT GAP. -- ROSTOWSKI CHALLENGED THESE CALCULATIONS, REFERRING TO HIS DEPUTY MINISTER'S REPORT, STATING THAT THE GAP WOULD THEN BE PLN 88 BILLION, NOT 240, WHICH WOULD BE THE EUROPEAN AVERAGE - Skórzyński. -- THIS MOMENT WAS IMPORTANT WHEN PiS ACCUSED THAT DURING THE PO GOVERNMENT, PENALTIES FOR FALSE INVOICES WERE ABOLISHED - Skórzyński. -- ROSTOWSKI ON THE FACT THAT PiS VOTED FOR IT. -- PiS WENT THE FURTHEST, AS IT FILED A NOTIFICATION WITH THE PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE REGARDING CHOJNA-DUCH'S TESTIMONY AND WORDS ABOUT AN INFORMAL GROUP IN THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE - Skórzyński. -- FOR THE CAMPAIGN PERIOD, GRIEVANCES ARE TO BE PUT ASIDE - Pochanke: No changes in abortion law this term - at a closed PiS meeting, the chairman cut off discussions. Many are discussing, and deep regret can be heard. But for the duration of the European Parliament campaign, grievances are to be deeply hidden. -- LESS DIPLOMATIC DISCUSSION BEHIND CLOSED DOORS - Arleta Zalewska: From the moment the doors closed and PiS politicians were without cameras, the discussion between leaders and the parliamentarians asking them questions was much less diplomatic and much more concrete than the party spokesperson later reported. -- KACZYŃSKI IN STRONG WORDS - Zalewska: It was Jarosław Kaczyński, precisely in the context of electoral consequences and political mistakes, who allegedly initiated and cut off discussions about changes in abortion law. According to unofficial information, the PiS chairman allegedly said in very strong words that there would be no changes this term, and any attempt to raise the topic or exert pressure on this matter would be met with political consequences. This refers to the motion filed with the Constitutional Tribunal by a group of PiS MPs. -- ZALEWSKA ON A CLEAR SIGNAL FROM JK TO PiS: Chairman Jarosław Kaczyński also allegedly sent a clear signal to politicians known for their sharp statements. He said that for the European campaign, extreme anti-EU ideas and comments should be put away in drawers. This also applies to social media. The party spokesperson is to ensure discipline among the MPs. -- THERE WAS NO LACK OF MUTUAL COMPLAINTS AND ACCUSATIONS - ZALEWSKA CONTINUES: As participants of the meeting report to "Fakty," there was no shortage of mutual complaints and accusations in the room. Primarily regarding the lack of engagement from specific MPs in the local government campaign. A program convention is to be held on Saturday. The most important politician there is expected to be Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. -- REPORT ON THE SZCZECIN SHIPYARD: Trade unionists from the Szczecin Shipyard Repair "Gryfia" are writing an open letter to Prime Minister Morawiecki and President Kaczyński. It is a list of unfulfilled promises. As the trade unionists write, the situation in the shipyard is not improving and is worse than it was. -- PAWEŁ PŁUSKA ON THE KEEL: Work was only supposed to begin with the construction of the ferry. However, first, it turned out that the said keel was not a keel at all, because it is difficult to call a construction element of a ferry something that does not fit the project, which, moreover, did not exist. But more than half a year ago, Minister Gróbarczyk assured that everything was going according to plan. ***** TVP WIADOMOŚCI -- PARLIAMENTARY INVESTIGATORS ASSURE THAT MINISTER ROSTOWSKI WILL RETURN BEFORE THE COMMITTEE. THEY ALSO DO NOT RULE OUT THE INTERROGATION OF DONALD TUSK - Jałtuszewski. -- THE CUMULATIVE VAT GAP DURING THE PO-PSL GOVERNMENTS AMOUNTS TO AT LEAST PLN 250 BILLION. FOR SUCH AN AMOUNT, ONE COULD PAY THE 500+ BENEFIT FOR 11 YEARS, BUILD 6 THOUSAND KM OF HIGHWAYS, 6 NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS, OR ONE MILLION APARTMENTS - Jałtuszewski. -- DURING THE PO-PSL GOVERNMENTS, LOSSES WERE CAUSED NOT ONLY BY THE VAT GAP BUT ALSO BY MANY OTHER AFFAIRS SUCH AS THE GAMBLING AFFAIR, AMBER GOLD, SHIPYARD AFFAIR, GAS AFFAIR, OR IT AFFAIR - announcement: We lost hundreds of billions of zlotys on them. -- THIS IS NOT ONLY THE VAT MAFIA BUT ALSO THE REPRIVATIZATION MAFIA IN WARSAW - Maciej Sawicki: At the same time, PO-PSL politicians claimed that a change in economic policy was impossible, and the state could not afford the social programs proposed by PiS. -- AFTER THE CHANGE OF POWER IN 2015, IT QUICKLY TURNED OUT THAT THE ROBBERY OF THE STATE BUDGET COULD BE STOPPED - Sawicki. -- OPPONENTS OF THE POLISH GOVERNMENT DO NOT HIDE THAT THEY WANT TO REVERSE THE REFORMS INTRODUCED BY PiS - Sawicki. -- GIGANTIC BUDGET LOSSES DUE TO VAT FRAUD ENDED IN POLAND WHEN THE GOVERNMENT CHANGED - announcement: Services began to effectively combat tax theft and annually thwart fraud attempts worth PLN 7 billion. -- IN 3 YEARS, EXPENDITURE ON MASS SPORTS IN POLAND INCREASED BY AS MUCH AS 93%, AND SUPPORT REACHES 8 TIMES MORE ENTITIES THAN IN 2015 - announcement: The Ministry of Sport and Tourism summarized its three-year activity. -- SOVIET PATRONS ARE RETURNING TO THE STREETS OF THE CAPITAL. THE PRESIDENT OF WARSAW ANNOUNCES THE CHANGE OF A DECIDED MAJORITY OF STREET NAMES PREVIOUSLY DECOMMUNIZED - announcement. -- THE STREET OF JACEK KACZMARSKI, WHO DEVOTED MUCH OF HIS CREATIVITY TO THE ENSELVEMENT OF POLES IN THE CHAINS OF COMMUNISM, IS TO DISAPPEAR FROM WARSAW - Jan Korab. -- THE PRESIDENT OF THE CAPITAL ANNOUNCES THE SYMBOLIC RETURN OF COMMUNISTS - -- PATRONS OF POLAND'S ANNEXATION TO THE SOVIET UNION WILL RETURN - Korab. -- THE MAZOWIAN VOIVODE EMPHASIZED THAT ONLY IN WARSAW DID HE HAVE A PROBLEM IMPLEMENTING THE DECOMMUNIZATION LAW - Korab. -- ON DECEMBER 13, WARSAW COUNCILORS ARE TO MAKE FINAL DECISIONS ON CHANGING WARSAW STREET NAMES - Korab.