State Foresters informed the Attorney General's Office of the possibility of seven people committing a crime in connection with the order of two thousand billboards with the intention of placing them in forest areas. His predecessors were willing to spend up to 65 million Polish zlotys for this.
As the State Forestry Department indicated, the notification came as a result of an audit of the company, and among the subjects audited was the program to implement and install two thousand billboards in forest areas.
The notification concerns violations of the Public Procurement Act, overestimation of the costs of purchasing the billboards, unjustified financing of the entire project from the Forest Fund, mismanagement and possible use of the billboards for political campaigning purposes.
As specified, the persons mentioned in the notification are persons from the State Forestry Administration, Forest Culture Center and the Administration of the General Directorate of State Forestry which supervises the activities of the Forest Culture Center (OKL) in Gołuchów, also as members of the Management Board and Supervisory Board of a wholly owned company LP “Bieszczady “.
Read also: 23 million are lying in the forest. This is how the state forests organized an advertising campaign
Billboard in Oborniki near Poznań “Black and White” TVN24
Two thousand billboards worth 65 million
In the second half of 2022, the then Director of State Forestry decided to launch a program with a budget of PLN 65 million, coordinated by OKL, the forestry noted. The Center commissioned the construction and installation of two thousand structures to the company “Bieszczady” from Ustrzyki Dolne, in which the State Forestry holds one hundred percent of the shares. There was no need to organize a tender with general terms and single source procurement was used.
Guidelines for the State Forest Campaign in the amount of PLN 65 million Internal documents of the LP obtained by a journalist at “Gazeta Wyborcza”
However, as emphasized in the State Forests Declaration, “Bieszczady” did not carry out practically any part of the requested and paid subject matter of the contract, but entrusted the entire task to two other entities unrelated to the State Forests, paid them for the erection of the billboards, and commissioned the installation of the structures. Steel for four other companies. As a result, some works were paid for twice. The forests indicated that this was the subject of a separate notification.
As confirmed by state foresters, as a result, about 300 structures have been built in the forests, but missing documentation and construction defects prevent their legal and safe use, and improper storage of manufactured items causes permanent damage.
Notifying the Public Prosecution after the audit
“I would like to categorically emphasize that the forests are not responsible for the infringement project. The audit process has made it possible to draft a notice to the State Prosecutor's Office against specific persons, including members of the Sovereign Poland Party. The Prosecutor's Office and the General Director of State Forests, said Witold Koss, In the statement: “The scope of their liability will be determined by the courts. The only way to remedy the situation in the state forests is through self-clearance.”
See the material “Fakty”: The promotional campaign for state forests cost tens of millions of zlotys. There are no visible traces
Elements of billboards in Rab quarry “Black and White” TVN24
They are grown on a quarter of Poland
Poland's forest area currently stands at more than 9.2 million hectares, of which more than 7.3 million hectares are managed by state forests. State Forests declares on its website that it is the largest organization in the European Union managing forests owned by the state treasury, managing a quarter of the area of Poland.
Cleaning up after his predecessors
On January 9, Jozef Kubica, Director General of State Forests, was dismissed. The new president of the company was Forster Witold Kos. One of his first decisions was to initiate legal and financial audit of all forest areas. The new administration of State Forests (which was politically under the control of sovereign Poland) decided to consider, among other things: competitions, promotional activities and estate sales that had been organized in previous years.
Main image source: “Black and White” TVN24
Echo Richards embodies a personality that is a delightful contradiction: a humble musicaholic who never brags about her expansive knowledge of both classic and contemporary tunes. Infuriatingly modest, one would never know from a mere conversation how deeply entrenched she is in the world of music. This passion seamlessly translates into her problem-solving skills, with Echo often drawing inspiration from melodies and rhythms. A voracious reader, she dives deep into literature, using stories to influence her own hardcore writing. Her spirited advocacy for alcohol isn’t about mere indulgence, but about celebrating life’s poignant moments.
