Four County Board Members and No Answer

At the end of September, we sent separate inquiries to four members of the County Board: Stanisław Chwojnicki, Jan Kozak, Zbigniew Mitera and Ewa Potyszka. We asked about the termination of our agreement to publish articles in the newspaper. In our opinion, starosta Dariusz Kwaśniewski got angry because, during an election year, we took up an issue that outraged people: dirty county roads, and terminated our agreement in retaliation. To find out what had happened and whether the board members were puppets or had opinions of their own, we tested them. We asked whether they had made the decision jointly or merely approved Kwaśniewski’s personal decision. We also asked spokesperson Katarzyna Biegasiewicz-Mularczyk for the minutes of the board meeting.

Neither Chwojnicki, Kozak, Mitera nor Potyszka answered the officially submitted question. Biegasiewicz-Mularczyk, in turn, did not provide the minutes. She only replied that “The County Board took note of the information about the proposed termination of the agreement, which was discussed under miscellaneous matters. The decision was—according to procedure—collegial and unanimous (there were no dissenting votes).”

A month and a half has passed since we asked the question. The board members failed our test completely.

Text of the inquiry sent

Bolesławiec, 2014-09-23

Explanation of the termination of the publication agreement

Member of the County Board

Dear Sir—

Please explain whether the decision to terminate the agreement for publication in the Istotne Informacje newspaper was a collegial decision of the Board or a personal decision of starosta Dariusz Kwaśniewski.

The agreement was terminated in April 2014, after the publication of an article about dirty county streets. In response to our publication, spokesperson Katarzyna Biegasiewicz-Mularczyk sent a correction that failed to meet formal and substantive requirements. When I refused to publish it, starosta Dariusz Kwaśniewski and the spokesperson jointly attempted to print the correction in the Istotne Informacje newspaper under the agreement the county had concluded with me for the regular publication of various articles. Under the agreement, however, the articles were to concern the work of local-government bodies, cultural and sporting events, and the promotion of the county. I decided that the correction, which violated the conditions set out in the law and additionally undermined our journalistic integrity, would not be published—especially since taxpayers would have paid for it. I refused to print it and paid the contractual penalty for failing to publish it. Despite the matter having been handled properly and in accordance with the agreement, starosta Dariusz Kwaśniewski terminated the agreement.

I would like to point out that for many years, cooperation with the County Board, when Cezary Przybylski was starosta, proceeded without problems. Critical articles also appeared during that time, but the Board never terminated an agreement after their publication. I never felt such pressure that entering into and maintaining the agreement depended on the absence of critical articles. I often heard from county representatives that all media were treated equally—for example, all publication agreements were for the same amount. So why are Istotne Informacje now the only media outlet with which the starosta’s office does not cooperate?

Please present your position on this matter and answer the question asked at the beginning of the letter.

Yours faithfully—
Krzysztof Gwizdała