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The Structure of the Polish government (2007)


Kamila B  
17 May 2007 /  #1
Each country is ruled in its specific way. In this article I am going to present what the governmental structure of Poland is and the chain of command within the different branches.

Government type of the country: Republic

Executive branch:

Chief of state: Lech Kaczynski. The President is the highest representative of the Republic of Poland in domestic and international relations; is elected to serve a five-year term by universal, equal, direct and secret ballot; an individual can serve a maximum of two terms in office; the president is answerable only to the State Tribunal.

Head of the government: Jaroslaw Kaczynski

Cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to the prime minister and the Sejm. The president appoints the cabinet according to the proposals of the prime minister, typically from the majority coalition in the bicameral judicial lower house (the Sejm). The Council of Ministers is answerable to the Sejm for its actions and ministers and the prime minister are answerable to the State Tribunal.

Legislative branch: is exercised in Poland by the bicameral parliament consisting of an upper house- the Senate (a chamber of 100 senators elected to serve four-year terms by universal, direct and secret ballot), and a lower house-the Sejm (a chamber with 460 members, all chosen under a complex system of proportional representation to serve four-year terms.

When sitting in joint session, members of the Sejm and Senate form the National Assembly (the Zgromadzenie Narodowe) which is formed on three occasions: when a new President take the oath of office, when an indictment against the President of the Republic is brought to the Tribunal of State and when a President is permanently unable to exercise their duties due to the state of their health is declared.

Judicial branch: plays an important role in decision-making. Its major institutions include the Supreme Court of Poland (Sad Najwyzszy); the Supreme Administrative Court of Poland ( Naczelny Sad Administracyjny) whose judges are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the National Council of the Judiciary for an indefinite period; the Constitutional Tribunal of Poland (Trybunal Konstytucyjby) whose judges are chosen by the Sejm for nine-year terms; and the State Tribunal of Poland ( Trybunal Stanu) whose judges are chosen by the Sejm for the duration of its term.

Administrative divisions: 16 provinces (wojewodztwa); Dolnoslaskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Lodzkie, Lubelskie, Lubuskie, Malopolskie, Mazowieckie, Opolskie, Podkarpackie, Podlaskie, Pomorskie, Slaskie, Swietokrzyskie, Warminsko-Mazurskie, Wielkopolskie, Zachodniopomorskie

Political parties (in parliament): Law and Justice (PiS), Civic Platform (PO), Self-Defense (SO), Democratic Left Alliance (SLD), League of Polish Families (LPR) and the Polish Peasant Party (PSL).

Principal Government Officials:

President-- Lech Kaczynski (PiS)
Prime Minister--Jaroslaw Kaczynski (PiS)
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture--Andrzej Lepper (SO)
Deputy Prime Minister--Ludwik Dorn (PiS)
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education--Roman Giertych
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Anna Fotyga (PiS)
Minister of Economy--Piotr Wozniak (No Party)
Minister of Internal Affairs and Administration--Janusz Kaczmarek (PiS)
Minister of Defense--Aleksander Szczyglo (PiS)
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance--Zyta Gilowska ( PO )
Minister of Treasury--Wojciech Jasinski (PiS)
Minister of Labor and Social Policy--Anna Kalata (SO)
Minister of Justice--Zbigniew Ziobro (PiS)
Minister of Transport and Infrastructure--Jerzy Polaczek (PiS)
Minister of Science and Higher Education--Michal Sewerynski (No Party)
Minister of Culture and National Heritage--Kazimierz Ujazdowski (PiS)
Minister of Regional Development--Grazyna Gesicka (No Party)
Minister of Health--Zbigniew Religa (No Party)
Minister of Environment--Jan Szyszko (PiS)
Minister of Sports--Tomasz Lipiec (No Party)
Minister of Maritime Economy--Rafal Wiechecki (LPR)
Coordinator for Special Services--Zbigniew Wassermann (PiS)
Ambassador to the United States --Janusz Reiter
Deputy Chief of Mission --Wojciech Flera

The diversity and structure of the Polish government made it different from other cultures, however, the ultimate goal is the same. The purpose of the government is to rule effectively and to make decisions that are in the best interest for the people of Poland .
davidpeake  14 | 451  
18 May 2007 /  #2
i am wondering if more people went out and voted it might help push the country along a bit quicker than it is at the moment.
johan123  
18 May 2007 /  #3
Poland is currently pushing Europe to answer fundamental questions about its relationship with Russia
dannyboy  18 | 248  
18 May 2007 /  #4
Kamilla, that is some brilliant work and a great post.

bardzo dziekuje
Grzegorz_  51 | 6138  
18 May 2007 /  #5
But some things are wrong. Dorn is not a vice-PM anymore and Zyta hasn't been in PO since at least 2 years.
Rafi  
18 May 2007 /  #6
Still good
busip  - | 7  
26 Oct 2007 /  #7
and what do you think about the fact that now the prime minister will be from PO? happy or not ?

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