Prime Minister Morawiecki: I hope the opposition will come to its senses

wPolityce.pl: How did the Law and Justice Katowice Convention differ from the previous party conventions?

PREMIER MATEUSZ MORAWIECKI: We met in Katowice to discuss the program for Poles for the next four years. We take seriously our electoral obligations and the voters themselves. Over 70 thematic panels, several thousand people, including hundreds of experts - yes, it was an extremely fruitful brainstorming session on the most important challenges facing Poland, and not any self-promotion of politicians. We are facing a great opportunity today, and the last three years have brought unprecedented economic growth that can give us an impulse to catch up with the West faster than it seemed not so long ago. For this to happen, we need a responsible government with credible leaders who will courageously implement the programme for as many citizens as possible.

To what extent will this programme be important in these elections and to what extent will the ideological differences?

The programme achieves credibility. In only four years of leadership, we have succeeded in what has been rare in the last 30 years - we have kept our word by delivering on what we have committed ourselves to. Like the vast majority of Poles, we do not want social revolutions. Contrary to our position, we do not want to apply shocking moral solutions to our compatriots. We want to expand the area of decent living for the widest possible social groups every day and we want to boost the Polish economy in such a way as to end Poland once and for all as a source of cheap labour and low salaries.

Jarosław Kaczyński spoke in Katowice: „We must reject the offensive of evil. How do you understand that?

I think that President Jarosław Kaczyński defined today’s anti-family offensive very well, saying these important words about the clash with the forces of evil. We are not angels, but these parties, which for four years have not been able to accept failure, give the impression recently that they are really ready for anything to gain power. As if they had sold their souls to the forces of evil. These ideas rejected by the majority of society to promote radical left-wing and sometimes leftist ideology, and from the very first grades of primary school, the sexualisation of several-year-old children, cannot be called otherwise. The school is intended to teach, not to ideologise. I hope that the opposition will come to its senses and will not allow itself to be controlled by crazy left-wing ideologues. If it does not come to its senses, we will fight hard against it and call it by its very name - it is nothing else but the fight against evil.

In your speech, you stressed very strongly that economic development will be the most important thing for the next four years.

We have restored the dignity of millions of people with our ambitious but also very tangible social and family policies. 500 plus, in a moment 500 plus for each child, a reduction in the retirement age, money for the school children, a thirteenth pension, a Mama 4 plus - all this we have done and all this will be continued by us. Now, we have to make a civilisational leap forward based on a noticeable improvement in the quality of public services for Poles and a powerful strengthening of our economy. That is why I proposed five priorities for the near future: improvement in health care, a new boost to education, environmental protection, and energy security combined with low energy prices and ambitious investments in modern infrastructure and science. All this in order to make Poland the best place to live in Europe. When you perform public service, you have to turn your dreams about the future of your Homeland into reality.

An interview by mk, tłum. K.J.