European Parliament Visit to Poland Marred by ‘Dictator’ Banner Protest
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola faced a highly charged political spectacle during her address to Poland’s parliament on Friday, as opposition lawmakers from the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party unveiled a large banner reading “TUSK=DICTATOR” and accused Prime Minister Donald Tusk of orchestrating a judicial coup. The protest erupted shortly after Metsola began speaking in the Sejm, Poland’s lower house, as part of an official visit to Warsaw.
According to a report by RT, MPs from the PiS party brandished photographs of riot police surrounding the Constitutional Tribunal and held up yellow placards in English warning that a “coup d’état” was underway in Poland, allegedly instigated by Tusk. The stunt was intended to draw international attention to the bitter constitutional crisis that has deepened since Tusk’s pro-EU ruling coalition took power, pitting it against the Euroskeptic President Karol Nawrocki and his conservative allies.
Za chwilę zaczną śpiewać i sprzedawać zegarki. pic.twitter.com/EDb0vSdmpn
Government and Opposition Clash Over Judicial Control
The confrontation has intensified Poland’s long-standing institutional deadlock.
The current crisis followed dramatic scenes in Warsaw the previous week when riot police surrounded the Constitutional Tribunal. The government-backed judges attempted to suspend the tribunal’s president, Bogdan Świeczkowski, and vice president, Bartłomiej Sochański. President Nawrocki, who was visiting Africa at the time, cut his trip short and returned to Warsaw, accusing Tusk’s government of forcibly seizing a constitutional institution and violating the country’s constitutional order, as reported by RT.
🔥 Metsola przemawia, PiS wymachuje „Tusk = dyktator”. Obsesja zamiast argumentów. Hucpa zamiast przyzwoitości. 🇵🇱 Patriotyzm na ustach, kompromitacja na sali. Sejm to nie terapia waszej frustracji po utracie władzy. Wstyd na całą Europę! pic.twitter.com/r3iHCBUdSB
In response to the parliamentary protest, PiS lawmaker Marcin Warchoł took to social media to accuse EU officials of hypocrisy. “Brussels sees crimes where there are none, and is blind to obvious violations of law,” he wrote, claiming that figures like European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Metsola were prioritizing political interests over the rule of law. Marcin Warchoł alleged that Ursula von der Leyen was embracing Tusk while pretending to be “blind and deaf” to the alleged takeover of the Constitutional Tribunal. Another PiS MP, Marek Wesoły, echoed the sentiment, writing that his party had “reminded” Metsola “who Donald Tusk is!”
Prime Minister Tusk, appearing unfazed by the display, posted a photograph of himself with the opposition banner visible in the background. “They’ll start singing and selling watches in a moment,” he joked, an apparent reference to previous protests where PiS lawmaker Michał Wójcik sang a popular Polish song and a conservative TV outlet promoted commemorative watches. Tusk later told reporters he had been moved by Metsola’s address, adding that the “scenery was also very interesting.”
Metsola Praises Poland's EU Security Role
Metsola, during her address to the Sejm, praised Poland’s importance to the European Union and declared that a threat to Polish security was a threat to Europe as a whole. When asked about the protest by PiS lawmakers, she described it as “an expression of democracy,” choosing largely not to engage directly with the demonstrators’ accusations.
The deepening feud comes at a critical time for Poland, as the government’s confrontational stance with EU institutions over judicial independence has drawn significant international attention and criticism from Brussels.
Tusk = dyktator! pic.twitter.com/vX3Fs1LdUN
The crisis remains unresolved, with the Constitutional Tribunal at the center of the power struggle between the Tusk government and the opposition-aligned president.
