The Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, a prominent Polish fundraiser led by social campaigner Jerzy Owsiak, is collecting donations this year for children with cancer and blood disorders.
Telewizja Republika, a broadcaster supportive of the right-wing opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party and critical of Owsiak, is at the centre of a counter-campaign called "I Don’t Give to Owsiak, I Support Republika," according to media reports.
The initiative, spearheaded by conservative Gazeta Polska Clubs, encourages donations to the station instead of the charity on its key fundraising day.
'Sick with hatred'
Prime Minister Donald Tusk condemned the move on Sunday, saying that the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity "is raising funds for children battling cancer," while supporters of Telewizja Republika "are fundraising for their media, sick with hatred.”
The fundraiser’s main 2025 event is set to take place on January 26.
Owsiak, the driving force behind the annual charity effort, told reporters in October that the fundraiser's theme would be "pediatric oncology and hematology," with donations going to "18 children's wards, 17 hospices, five oncological neurosurgery centres, six oncological surgery centres, and four pathomorphology departments" nationwide.
The funds will be used to purchase "cutting-edge equipment, the best available for effective patient treatment," he said.
Impresario Jerzy Owsiak, the driving force behind the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, unveils details of the 2025 fundraiser at a news conference in mid-October. Photo: PAP/Adam Warżawa
Last year, the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity set a fundraising record when it collected nearly PLN 282 million (EUR 66 million, USD 68 million) for equipment to help diagnose and prevent lung diseases, according to its organisers.
The foundation behind the drive says it has raised more than PLN 2 billion (EUR 470 million, USD 480 million) in funds for pediatric and elderly healthcare, and bought more than 71,500 pieces of medical equipment since the effort was launched in 1992.
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Source: IAR, polskieradio24.pl, onet.pl