The drug scandal of the head of the National Security Bureau. The Ombudsman steps into action

The Commissioner for Human Rights, Marcin Wiącek, asked the head of the Military Counterintelligence Service, General Jarosław Stróżyk, for explanations after the category of drugs taken by a public official was revealed in the media – the Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights reported on Thursday.

On Monday, “Gazeta Wyborcza” published an article about the drugs that the head of the National Security Bureau, Sławomir Cenckiewicz, was allegedly taking. According to the newspaper, failure to include information about their receipt in the security questionnaire was the reason for the Military Counterintelligence Service withdrawing his access to classified information.

The Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights recalled that the article disclosed detailed information on the categories of drugs taken by the person subject to verification proceedings, including data on the psychotropic and psycholeptic nature of the prescribed active substances and information indicating an identifiable pharmacotherapeutic regimen.

The publication contains information that, in accordance with the Act on the Protection of Classified Information, is protected as data from inspection proceedings. The disclosed information also constitutes a special category of personal data within the meaning of the GDPR as relating to health – reminds the Ombudsman's office.

According to the Commissioner for Human Rights, disclosing data about the health condition of a person subject to verification in public space poses a threat to the privacy of the person being checked and to the protection of classified information. It may also have systemic effects that go beyond the scope of an individual case.

Such incidents may undermine citizens' trust in state institutions responsible for the protection of classified information. When they concern the highest-ranking public officials, they may also undermine the security of the state's defense potential, as well as countries that ensure reciprocity, explained the spokesman.

Wiącek asked the head of the Military Counterintelligence Service, General Jarosław Stróżyk, to clarify whether the service cooperated with the Internal Security Agency to ensure the security of classified information even after the verification procedure was completed, in order to limit the risk of unauthorized secondary access to it or its disclosure.

The Ombudsman also wants to know whether the Military Counterintelligence Service conducted a security audit after this information was published in the media and whether the service implemented additional control and security procedures after the incident to avoid such events in the future.

Wiącek also wants to be given the date of initiation of the explanatory proceedings and the expected date of its completion.

After the publication, the Minister Coordinator of Special Services, Tomasz Siemoniak, assured that there is no consent to leaks of information from the services in any case – to whomever it concerns. He stressed that he did not know whether the case of Cenckiewicz's drugs was a leak and that it would need to be determined and there would be an explanatory proceeding.

The head of the Military Counterintelligence Service informed that the files from November 2024 are the exclusive responsibility of administrative courts considering the parties' appeals, but nevertheless ordered the initiation of urgent explanatory proceedings, taking into account the good name of the service. (PAP)

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