Maciej Lasek Appointed Government Commissioner for CPK in Poland

CPK, responsible for the construction of high-speed lines in Poland, has a new government commissioner appointed by Donald Tusk's government: Maciej Lasek.

Maciej Lasek has been appointed by Donald Tusk's new government as the government commissioner for CPK, the state-owned joint stock company in charge of the preparation and construction of high-speed railways in Poland, the new Solidarity airport, and accompanying transport investments. The Commissioner is also the Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Funds. He succeeded Marcin Horala, who defended his seat in the elections and sat on the opposition benches. CPK has also renewed its supervisory board since yesterday.

Maciej Lasek was born in Elbląg, northern Poland. He studied aeronautical mechanics and engineering at the Warsaw University of Technology. He received his doctorate from the Military Technical Academy. He worked at the Institute of Aviation and was a long-time member of the government commission to investigate the causes of aviation accidents. From 2003-2007 he was editor-in-chief of the journal Science, Innovation, Technology. He entered the public sphere as a member of the commission investigating the causes of the air crash of the Government Special with President L. Kaczyński near Smolensk. In 2022, he published a book on the disaster, which not only debunks various myths and conspiracy theories but also critically examines the performance of the prosecutor's office, the state administration, and the courts. Lasek defended his parliamentary seat for Donald Tusk's Civic Coalition. Previously, he was elected to the regional parliament of the Mazowiecki Voivodeship and also to the Warsaw-Bemowo City Council. He has been a member of the Civic Platform since 2019.

Maciej Lasek, who, like his predecessor, has a political mandate backed by his election to the Sejm, announced an audit of CPK and the abolition of the Commissioner's Board of Advisors as his first step in his new position. The latter, he said, had not produced any concrete benefits for the company. In his address to the Polish Sejm on 18 January, he outlined his plans for his new role, saying that the audit of CPK was to cover activities, objectives, and priorities, and how they were to be achieved. It would also cover the financing, commitments, and contracts the company had entered into, as well as its structures and management.

There will also be a staff audit of the activities of former Commissioner Horala. He described some expenditures, such as media support for CPK or the preparation of a socio-economic plan for CPK, as "difficult to justify". He also said that CPK had contributed to the renovation of three church altars. He will soon propose to the government a decision on the future use of the current Warsaw Okecie International Airport and the Warsaw-Modlin Regional Airport. According to Lasek, the planned airport should not "cannibalize" the potential development of regional airports. Their development and management were transferred to CPK by the previous government. Lasek said their development would take priority over constructing a new airport near Warsaw. Lasek has not ruled out its construction now, despite pre-election criticism: "We will continue within the framework created by our predecessors, but we will not be serfs to their decisions."

 

Source: cpk.pl, RAILTARGET