The Assessment of Political Elites in the Speeches of the 8th Term Sejm of the Republic of Poland

Abstract

The problems investigated in the present study concern the way of how political elites are perceived in the lower chamber of the Polish Parliament, the empirical material (the subject of research) being the speeches delivered in the 8^th term Sejm of the Republic of Poland. The image of political elites is definitely critical because only the historical elites were positively assessed (from the Constitution of the 3^rd of May to the attitude of the elites during the Second World War), except for the “so-called” communist elites. Many accusations are leveled by representatives of the current ruling elite against the European Union elites (the so-called Brussels elites) and the elites of the Third Republic of Poland. The ruling elite after 2015, recognizing themselves (although reluctantly) as a political elite, very strongly emphasise that they are not the government of the elites and do not act in the interest of the latter but for the sake of ordinary citizens. The previous political elite should be replaced by the national elite. It is not merely a conceptual change but this emphasises that power should be exercised by people who correctly identify the needs of the nation. It is a reaction against the policies conducted by the governments of the Third Republic of Poland when, according to those now in power, the interest of the whole of society was not properly looked after, but only that of the elites. There are few statements by representatives of the opposition that would counter the critical assessment of the political elites which governed after 1989. The exception is the statements defending the judicial elites as authorities who are the only ones capable of opposing the actions of the current government. The process of replacement of elites is noticeable in all the spheres of social life.