Poland’s nationalist President Karol Nawrocki on Sunday appointed a council to rewrite the country’s constitution.
The members announced for the council include several figures associated with the Law and Justice (PiS) party. While all parliamentary groups are invited to take part, it is unclear if they will do so.
Nawrocki announced his plans to review the constitution on Friday, drawing criticism from Prime Minister Donald Tusk on social media. Before working on a new constitution, “I suggest starting with abiding by the current one,” Tusk wrote in response to Friday’s announcement.
Poland’s president has the right to propose changes to the constitution, but they have to be approved by two-thirds of the deputies in the lower house of parliament and an absolute majority in the Senate. Both bodies are under the control of the liberal coalition government opposed to Nawrocki.
The right-wing opposition PiS party that backs Nawrocki doesn’t have a majority in parliament, so there is no chance of any of Nawrocki’s amendments being passed. Nawrocki is engaged in a political battle with the pro-EU Tusk, and the president has been looking to expand his currently limited powers.
The appointment of key council positions on Sunday was symbolic, as May 3 is Poland’s Constitution Day. In a social media post to mark the occasion, Tusk wrote: “Only those nations that respect their constitutions stand a chance of victory.”
The Council for the New Constitution has until the end of Nawrocki’s current term, which runs until 2030, to come up with an alternative draft of the constitution.
