dr. hab. Jerzy Supernat Institute of administrative Studies University of Wrocław

1. Polish Systemof Public Administration dr. hab. Jerzy SupernatInstitute of administrative StudiesUniversity of Wrocław

2. Polish System of Public Administration dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

3. Polish System of Public Administration • Polish territorial administration is dualistin the sense of co-existence of: • territorial self-government • territorial governmental administration (administration controlled by the central government) • Territorial governmental administration is divided into: • general, belonging to voivods (appointed by the Prime Minister) • unified, composed of authorities and entities subordinate to the voivod (e.g. voivodship headquarters of police, the board of educa-tion, and voivodship inspectorate of building supervision) • non-unified, involving authorities and entities that are not subordi-nate to the voivod, being subject to ministers and/or heads of central offices (e.g. military authorities, tax authorities, and road transport inspectorates) • In Poland dualism in the strict sense of co-existence of territorial self-govern-ment and territorial governmental administration is represented only at the level of voivodship. dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

4. Polish System of Public Administration • Essentially made for the purpose of territorial self-government, the basic administrative division of Poland is made into: • municipalities, being basic units of local self-government • districts as supra-municipality level of local self-government • voivodships as units of regional self-government • In each unit of territorial (local and regional) self-government there is • a council elected directly by the members of a given self-govern-ment community • an executive authority • single executive authority elected directly in municipalities: the municipality administrative officer (wójt) in rural municipalities, amayor of the town (burmistrz) in smaller towns, and a town pre-sident (prezydent) in bigger towns • a board (zarząd) in districts and voivodships, elected by the council, chaired by a district head (starosta) and amarshall (mar-szałek województwa) respectively dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

5. Polish System of Public Administration Governmental state administration the Council of Ministers the Prime Minister ministers central offices territorialgovernmental administration Non-governmental state administration the President of the Re-public of Poland the National Council of Radio Broadcasting and Television the Supreme Chamber of Control State administration dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

6. Polish System of Public Administration dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

7. Polish System of Public Administration • The Council of Ministers • In common parlance it is often referred to as the government. How-ever the Constitution does not equate the Council of Ministers with the government. Consequently, one can speak about: • the government in a narrow sense = the Council of Ministers • the government in a broad sense = an organizationally complex mechanism, a „working system” established to • govern the country in a political sense • determine the policy of the state • prepare principles for the implementation of this policy • create overall conditions for the execution of tasks delineated within this policy • direct the implementation processes in various areas of the administration and economy dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

8. Polish System of Public Administration • The Prime Minister / The President of the Council of Ministers / Premier • presides over the Council of Ministers • is a monocratic and independent organ of state admini-stration, equipped with unique duties and powers dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

9. Polish System of Public Administration • Art. 148 of the Constitution • The Prime Minister shall: • represent the Council of Ministers, • manage the work of the Council of Ministers, • issue regulations, • ensure the implementation of the policies adopted by the Council of Ministers and specify the manner of their im-plementation, • coordinate and control the work of members of the Council of Ministers, • exercise, within the limits and by the means specified in the Constitution and statute, supervision of territorial self-government, • be the official superior of employees of government admini-stration. dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

10. Polish System of Public Administration • Ministers • The constitution (art. 149) distinguishes two categories of ministers: • departmental ministers • ministers without portfolio • Departmental ministers manage specific departments. The departments for which they are responsible are listed in the Governmental Administration Act 1997 that divides the entire field of administration into 32 departments and outlines the principal subject matters covered by each of them. • The Prime Minister, when determining the tasks of the governmental admini-stration and planning the composition of the Council, must decide which de-partment or departments should be within the scope of responsibility of parti-cular ministers. The duties and prerogatives of departmental ministers are prescribed in parliamentary statutes and subordinate legislation. These are their „own” duties and prerogatives, which means that ministers, in addition to being members of the Council, simultaneously act as autonomous high administrative authorities. dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

11. Polish System of Public Administration Art. 151 of the Constitution The Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Ministers and ministers shall take the following oath in the presence of the President of the Republic: „Assuming this office of Prime Minister (Deputy Prime Minister, minister) I do solemnly swear to be faithful to the provisions of the Constitution and other laws of the Republic of Poland, and that the good of the Homeland and the prosperity of its citizens shall forever remain my supreme obligation”. The oath may also be taken with the additional sentence „So help me, God”. dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

12. Polish System of Public Administration • Central offices • Central offices form a level just below the governmental main organs and are subordinated either to one of the ministers or directly to the Prime Minister. They include: • the Main Statistical Office • the Public Procurement Office • the Central Office of Measures • the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection • the Polish Committee for Normalisation • the Office of Electronic Communications • the Internal Security Agency • the Foreign Intelligence Agency • The principle object of the activity of the central offices is the everyday execution of the law and the administrative tasks assigned to them. As a consequence, such offices remain fairly independent and are fairly immune to fluctuations at the higher governmental level that is naturally very susceptible to the political environment. dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

13. Polish System of Public Administration • The President of the Republic of Poland • Art. 10 of the Constitution • The system of government of the Republic of Poland shall be based on the separation of and balance be-tween the legislative, executive and judicial powers. • (…) executive power shall be vested in the President of the Republic of Poland and the Council of Ministers (…). dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

14. Polish System of Public Administration • The President of the Republic of Poland is the main organ of administra-tion, nonetheless his status is special and different from the position of any other administrative organ. The Presidency is unique because it has extensive and important prerogatives that transcend the sphere of executive power and reach into the sphere of competence of other state authorities. The Presi-dent: • is the supreme representative of the Republic of Poland and the guarantor of the continuity of state authority • may in certain circumstances dissolve the Sejm • participates in the legislative process by exercising the power to veto parlia-mentary statutes or sign them into law • appoints judges • grants citizenship • awards orders • may grant clemency • All of these prerogatives determine a unique presidential rank in comparison to the other main organs. For that reasons presidential functions may not be characterized simply as the execution of administrative duties. dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

15. Polish System of Public Administration • The National Council of Radio Broadcasting and Television • Art. 213 of the Constitution • The National Council of Radio Broadcasting and Television shall safeguard the freedom of speech, the right to information as well as safeguard the public interest regarding radio broadcasting and television. • The National Council of Radio Broadcasting and Television shall issue regulations and, in individual cases, adopt resolutions. • Art. 214 of the Constitution • The members of the National Council of Radio Broadcasting and Television shall be appointed by the Sejm, the Senate and the President of the Republic. • A member of the National Council of Radio Broadcasting and Television shall not belong to a political party, a trade union or perform public activities incompatible with the dignity of his func-tion. dr hab. Jerzy Supernat

16. Concluding Remark The similarity between Africa and Poland is that we were also a colonized country. We were a colony for 130 years. Ryszard Kapuściński dr hab. Jerzy Supernat