A press conference was held today in the Sejm by KO MPs Agnieszka Pomaska, Barbara Nowacka and Cezary Tomczyk on yet another conflict of interest in the merger between Lotos and PKN Orlen.
A few months after the amendments to the Commercial Companies Code went into effect, it turns out that a committee working under the Ministry of State Assets, in which people connected with PKN Orlen – attorney Kwaśnicki, attorney Mataczyński and Prof. Szumański – played key roles, was working on the amendments to these regulations. The new legislation is intended to make it easier for those responsible for the merger of Lotos with Orlen and the sale of Lotos to Hungary’s MOL and Saudi Aramco to avoid criminal liability. The MPs announced an application to the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau, which they are filing in connection with the case.
According to MP Agnieszka Pomaska, „This is a violation of the rules of lawmaking in the Polish parliament. The entire merger and sale of Lotos shows new irregularities every day. This transaction should not have happened at all. We are submitting a request to the CBA for an in-depth analysis of this conflict of interest and to take the necessary measures to clarify any doubts that arise in this case. We do not rule out notifying other authorities.”
Barbara Nowacka added that „the merger and sale of Lotos has long raised many doubts – both from the financial side and the energy security of Poland. The issue we are discussing today raises our objections – the safety of Polish women and men and the transparency of public institutions are too important. It is necessary to reveal who are the beneficiaries of these transactions and what is to be served by the inaction of those in power in a matter that directly strikes at the interests of the state treasury.”
As MP Cezary Tomczyk said, „We do not see any activity by state services in the Lotos merger and sale case. How could a situation be allowed in which Mr. Kwasnicki, Mr. Mataczynski and Mr. Szumanski were both creators and creators? It seems that a protective umbrella of the state has been spread over the entire merger and sale case in order to ensure impunity for those who decided on the matter.”
