PiS appealed against the August decision to Poland’s Supreme Court. However, the party lodged the appeal with a chamber of the court that the country’s centrist government feels is stacked with judges improperly appointed under the previous PiS government. The chamber’s legitimacy has also been questioned by the Court of Justice of the EU.
The chamber predictably sided with PiS in a ruling issued in December, apparently leaving little room for Domański but to pay out the money.
But the way the PKW issued its decision leaves gray areas. The body said that the Supreme Court chamber’s ruling must be respected, but the watchdog also said that it could not “prejudge” whether the chamber in question was legitimate.
That gave Domański an opportunity not to approve paying out the subsidy to PiS for now. With questions hanging over the legitimacy of the chamber, Domański asked the PKW what it actually meant, the minister said in a letter to the watchdog.
“Taking into account numerous doubts related to the content of [the PKW’s decision], I asked the National Electoral Commission to … clarify the doubts regarding its content,” Domański said in a statement issued Wednesday.
The PKW’s decision is “internally contradictory,” Domański added.