Over 366,000 visas were granted to citizens from Muslim and African countries during the tenure of the Law and Justice (PiS) government in Poland.
This shocking revelation came to light after journalists from "Gazeta Wyborcza" obtained a report from the Supreme Audit Office (NIK), shedding light on widespread irregularities in the visa issuance process. The scandal has prompted strong reactions from prominent political figures, including Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski.
The NIK report exposes significant failures in the oversight of the visa process under the PiS government. In response to the scandal, Tusk and Sikorski have quickly introduced new visa regulations and a comprehensive migration control strategy to address the issue.
Lack of Oversight in Visa Issuance
According to the NIK report, the PiS government displayed a lack of concern over who was receiving Polish visas and how they were being distributed. Consuls were allegedly pressured to issue work permits en masse to foreigners, without any consideration of their education, qualifications, or professional background.
The report, which spans 300 pages, names four foreign ministers appointed by the PiS government as being responsible for the scandal: Witold Waszczykowski, Jacek Czaputowicz, Zbigniew Rau, and Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk, the latter of whom served as foreign minister for only two weeks.
Prime Minister Tusk: NIK Report Confirms Our Fears
Prime Minister Donald Tusk, in response to the findings, expressed his outrage, highlighting the gravity of the situation. "While Polish soldiers and border guards were risking their lives to protect us from illegal migration driven by Putin and Lukashenko, the PiS government allowed 366,000 people from Asia and Africa to enter, many of them through bribery. The NIK report confirms our worst fears," Tusk stated on social media.
Foreign Minister Sikorski: Tightened Visa Rules and New Migration Strategy
Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, currently visiting the United States, also addressed the visa scandal. Sikorski recalled that, even before the NIK report was released, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had compiled a detailed internal investigation into the visa system's flaws.
As a result of the findings, Sikorski has implemented strict new guidelines for Polish consuls, aimed at preventing the issuance of visas to individuals without proper qualifications. "We are not bowing to lobbyists," he asserted, adding that the government is actively developing a robust migration control strategy and new legislation to tackle the issue.
This visa scandal has highlighted critical weaknesses in Poland's immigration oversight under the previous government and has spurred immediate action to reform the system and restore integrity to the visa process. Photo by Craig Heimburger, Wikimedia commons.