The debate, scheduled for Monday, October 9, is expected to feature conservative Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and centrist opposition leader Donald Tusk, a former prime minister, among other participants.
It is set to be broadcast by state television TVP at 6:30 p.m. local time.
Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, a leading opposition politician, said on Friday he hoped Poles would witness a "transparent discussion" despite "anticipated manipulation” by the government-controlled broadcaster and its “pseudo-journalists.”
Speaking in Wodzisław Śląski, in Poland’s southern Silesia coal region, Trzaskowski noted that Poland’s conservative leader Jarosław Kaczyński had decided to abstain from participating in the debate.
He described Kaczyński as being “out of touch with reality” and argued that the ruling party leader might have difficulties "passing a test of truth" during a live debate.
Trzaskowski also highlighted what he described as the contrast between "the bravery and openness” of Tusk, the leader of the centrist Civic Platform (PO) group, and the “reclusiveness” of Kaczyński, the head of the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party.
Trzaskowski, who serves as a deputy head of the Civic Platform, asserted that “whomever PiS sends to represent them in the debate” will “fail the test of truth" during the event despite any “scripted questions” and “pro-government bias.”
TVP is viewed by many as closely aligned with the current government, and accusations of media manipulation and bias have been a longstanding point of contention between the PiS government and the opposition.
Addressing voters on Friday, Trzaskowski condemned various pressures on media outlets in Poland, including previous “efforts to take over TVN,” a private news channel critical of the government, and the purchase of the Polska Press publishing group by a state-owned energy conglomerate.
He noted that media freedom in Poland was a topic of continual debate and international concern.
Trzaskowski voiced concern over reports that the state-controlled Polska Press group had refused to accept election advertisements from left-wing parties and the centre-right opposition Third Way electoral alliance due to claimed conflicts with "programmatic lines and values.”
He thanked all those who joined the opposition’s "March of a Million Hearts" in Warsaw last Sunday, while encouraging “active engagement” in the final stretch of the campaign and announcing more pre-election meetings with voters in southern Poland.
He emphasized his party’s determination to talk about the future, including “concrete plans” within their first 100 days in power if they get to form the next government.
These plans, he said, significantly factor in the development and respect for the traditions of regions such as Silesia, promising job creation as a key priority.
The political climate in the country continues to simmer as politicians on all sides utilize strong rhetoric against a backdrop of debates over democratic norms, media freedoms and electoral fairness.
Global observers and national citizens alike are poised to watch as these themes play out both in the upcoming debate and the election itself.
In August, Poland's lawmakers approved a government plan to combine parliamentary elections with a nationwide referendum on issues including illegal migration.
Voters will head to the ballot box on October 15 to elect 460 new MPs and 100 senators for a four-year term.
The ruling conservative Law and Justice party and its government coalition allies have maintained a clear lead over the opposition in most recent surveys, polling ahead of the centrist Civic Coalition (KO), the far-right Confederation group, the New Left, and the Third Way coalition of the rural-based Polish People’s Party (PSL) and the centre-right Poland 2050 grouping.
If it wins the election, the United Right coalition led by PiS and containing its two small allies, Sovereign Poland and the Republicans, may not be able to form a majority in parliament on its own.
The ruling conservatives in 2019 won a convincing victory over opposition parties at the ballot box, securing a second term in power.
Trzaskowski's Civic Platform governed Poland from 2007 to 2015 together with the Polish People’s Party.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP