'Communist' Polish MP resigns

2006-06-23 17:44

Warsaw - Poland's prime minister accepted the resignation of his finance minister, Zyta Gilowska, on Friday, after a prosecutor asked a court to investigate whether Gilowska had collaborated with the country's communist-era secret police.

Prime Minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz said Gilowska would be replaced by Pawel Wojciechowski, 46, a United States-trained economist who has served as his financial adviser for the past six months.

Gilowska was also a deputy prime minister.

She was seen as a guarantor of fiscal responsibility in Marcinkiewicz's government, a coalition of social conservatives with two small Euro-skeptic parties.

Marcinkiewicz, responding to concerns that Gilowska's departure would rattle financial markets, said the country's economic policy would remain unchanged.

Marcinkiewicz said: "Pawel Wojciechowski is a person who guarantees a smooth transfer of all matters at the finance ministry, and a continuation of our programme.

"He has had a wide-ranging Polish and American education, and he also has business experience.

Gilowska denies lying

"I hope that as someone well-prepared and already introduced to the issues, Pawel Wojciechowski will be a good minister, and that we will jointly continue the reforms."

Earlier on Friday, special prosecutor Wlodzimierz Olszewski asked a screening court to investigate whether Gilowska might have lied in her 2001 declaration that she had never collaborated with communist-era secret police.

He said "material gathered suggested a possibility that Ms Gilowska might have filed an untrue screening declaration".

The declaration is required of all Polish members of parliament.

Though past collaboration does not bring penalties, lying on such a declaration requires a 10-year ban on holding public office.

Gilowska denied lying.

She said the prosecutor's move was a result of "lies, blackmail, false accusations" by political enemies hoping to remove her from office.

- AP