During the interview for the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita, Law and Justice (PiS) MP and a former Polish agriculture minister Jan Krzysztof Ardanowski stated that he was informed by several people that he had been surveilled by the Israeli Pegasus spyware used by a government intelligence service.
He added that his future political decisions depended on whether he received absolute clarity on the matter.
“I am increasingly more worried by the situation of the state. This is not just my opinion. There are many PiS MPs who share my worries. More and more MPs are starting to wonder who actually rules in Poland,” he said.
Ardanowski emphasized that when it came to surveillance, he accepted all sorts of operational techniques, but they had to be carried out in accordance with the law.
“I simply want to be sure that the democratically-chosen majority rules in Poland and not some sad individuals who are pulling the strings behind the scenes,” he explained, adding that prior to 2015, PiS had condemned such pathologies among its predecessors and demanded explanations for all sorts of affairs involving intelligence services.
Jan Krzysztof Ardanowski, PiS MP:
I simply want to be sure that the democratically chosen majority rules in Poland and not some sad individuals who are pulling the strings behind the scenes.
The MP also stated that if he did not receive explanations concerning the surveillance, he will expect a parliamentary investigation commission to be established, and he would vote in favor. He said he believes that the affair would not be simply swept under the rug, and that during the next term someone will want to investigate the matter if it does not happen now.
“I am, of course, worried whether all of this is not some kind of setup, and that the whole affair about plugs is not a plant created by enemies of the Polish state,” he warned.
Ardanowski explained, however, that Jarosław Kaczyński himself had admitted that Pegasus was being utilized in Poland and other surveillance systems were also most likely at the disposal of services.
He noted that Kaczyński’s closest associate Marek Suski had admitted that even up to several hundred people could be wiretapped per year. The MP pointed out that key officials could be among this group, including ministers and MPs, and they may be surveilled without any accusations.
Ardanowski added that many other PiS MPs were worried that they could have been baselessly surveilled.
