Ex-PM Tusk questioned over pyramid scheme

Tusk, who was the prime minister of Poland from 2007 until 2014, pointed to institutions which he suggested were guilty of failings over the pyramid scheme scandal.

He named Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, some prosecutors and tax offices.

The Amber Gold pyramid scheme saw thousands of Poles cheated out of their savings from 2009 to 2012, at a time when Tusk was Poland’s prime minister.

Amber Gold had promised customers high returns on investments in gold, but the firm folded in August 2012.

According to media reports, some 19,000 customers were swindled out of a combined PLN 851 million (EUR 200 million) at the time.

Tusk said on Monday that the consumer protection office could have taken a harder stance to prevent Amber Gold from issuing advertisements.

But critics accused Tusk of trying to wash his hands of the scandal.

Conservative members of the special parliamentary commission noted that Tusk had overseen the consumer protection office.

Tusk was expected to be the commission’s last witness in its inquiry into the investment scam, following hearings of other former government officials as well as Amber Gold employees, law enforcers and tax and financial supervision officials.

Tusk resigned as the prime minister of Poland in 2014 to become president of the European Council, a key European Union leadership position.

(pk/gs)

Source: IAR