An average Bolesławiec resident asked whether the city sufficiently supports Gliniada will answer in the negative. In doing so, they merely repeat the opinion promoted by the former councillor and leader of Gliniada. It has reached the point where some residents openly accuse the municipal authorities on online forums of deliberately harming this spontaneous civic initiative. At the same time, they emphasise the event’s importance and its significance for promoting the city.
The fact is that, by 2010, more than PLN 57,000 had been allocated from the municipal and county budgets to organise the event. This year, the Parade of Love for Clay will receive no subsidy from either the city or the County Office. The County Office will support the Association by providing, free of charge, a guarded site on Armii Krajowej Street and allowing the use of part of the building.
They soaked their backsides in clay for thousands in public money
Although the former councillor and leader of Gliniada said at a 2009 City Council session that for three years the organisers of Gliniada had been “soaking their backsides for free, to promote the city and for the glory of the many people who [w urzędzie miasta] work here”, the Bolesławiec City Office and the County Office transferred a total of PLN 57,661.51 to the Via Sudetica Association between 2008 and 2010. In this way, they supported the Glinoludy in organising parades and the town where concerts and art workshops were held. In addition, both local-government institutions incurred unquantified costs: utilities, showers, site rental, rooms, assembling and dismantling the stage, and so on.
This year’s Glinoludy trips and the financial support they receive from the organisers inviting them are shrouded in strange secrecy. No amount has been disclosed, even though information about remuneration is not a trade secret, since the activities of all local-government institutions and associations are public. How much can the Glinoludy earn?
So much that it is frightening, or so little that it is shameful?
This year, the new post-election board of the Via Sudetica Association organised several travelling Glinoludy parades. As always, they were held under the banner of promoting Bolesławiec. A small group of Glinoludy made guest appearances in Goerlitz, at the Handicrafts Festival in Lubin and at the Festival in Pszczyna (Silesian Voivodeship). Association President Tomasz Gołba sent out press releases about these events. Asked whether the Glinoludy’s participation in the festivals involved remuneration—in other words, whether these were commercial trips—he gave an evasive answer and disclosed no amount:
The Glinoludy’s participation in various artistic events […] is not always connected with remuneration for the Association.
Even more mysterious was Małgorzata Czesak from the Municipal Cultural Events Agency in Lubin, which paid the Glinoludy and hosted the parade. Asked how much the Glinoludy’s fee was, she replied:
I see no reason why I should disclose a trade secret, because the public nature of an institution’s activities is one thing, while the amount of remuneration under a contract is another. […] I will only mention that it was merely the cost of the entire team that came to us.
Meanwhile, the law clearly states that all activities and property of local-government units are public.
Bogusława Ródzińska, secretary of the Audit Committee of the Plessart Artistic Association in Pszczyna, which invited the Bolesławiec Glinoludy to the Festival, confirmed that the Via Sudetica Association received money for participating in the event, but the amount also turned out to be a secret.
The mayor of Lwówek had announced the Parade at this year’s Agate Summer, but the Glinoludy did not appear in the town. “The Glinoludy did not participate in the opening parade of Lwóweckie Lato Agatowe because they did not arrive. Participation in the parade is voluntary,” Jan Serafin, chair of the Agate Summer Organising Committee, wrote to us. Voluntary participation means participation for free. It is possible that this was the real reason for the former councillor’s travelling troupe’s absence.
Does Gliniada earn money or not?
It turned out that it is difficult to make profits from a spontaneous carnival. The slogan of promoting Bolesławiec was not enough to drain the public purse. In addition, Gliniada has a leader who—putting it mildly—is confrontational and had, or still has, significant political ambitions.
The association of Gliniada with him and his candidacy in last year’s local elections resulted in the public money tap being turned off, possibly forever. The conflict with friendly institutions and media outlets stemmed mainly from the parade organisers’ inability to accept any criticism.
Moreover, they present themselves as the city’s saviours, who through their actions alone keep Bolesławiec afloat so that it is not swallowed up by small-town narrow-mindedness, oblivion and hopelessness. In this way, they display an unpleasant attitude towards the residents, who are ultimately the parade’s only creators.
Czy Gliniada nadal powinna być finansowana z publicznych pieniędzy?
(information: K. Gwizdała / G. Hanaf)