Heft36 1 - SFB 580 - Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena

POLISH BUSINESS REFERENCES LITERATUR – POLITICS RELATIONS
or a comfortable ‘waiting room’ before entering
into high politics ( Jasiecki, 2004). Research
clearly demonstrated clientelistic dependence
of Polish economic elites on political elites
and the role of the state as both the greatest
investor and client in the economy throughout
the 1990s ( Jasiecki, 2002).
According to World Bank 2009 Doing Business
ranking, Poland occupies position 72 (out of
183 countries examined) when it comes to the
ease of engaging in and conducting economic
activities. There were only 3 EU member
states with even poorer business climate: Czech
Republic (74), Italy (78) and Greece (109).
Moreover, Poland’s position has not changed
over the last 3 years, which suggests a limited
reform effort 6 . The Polish score is also quite
ambivalent: the country enjoys a relatively
high level of investor protection (41), while
rules for granting permits in the construction
sector are among the least business friendly in
the world (164). The generalized problem with
granting permits and licenses in many business
sectors (lengthy and difficult administrative
procedures, high levels of officials’ discretion,
and politicization of decision-making) is highly
conducive to corruptive practices, which is also
confirmed by Poland’s unsatisfactory score in
Transparency International rankings. Finally,
in the 2009 Index of Economic Freedom (Wall
Street Journal and Heritage Foundation),
Poland was classified as the last of all
the EU member states (position 82 out
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of 179 countries). Main factors constraining
economic freedom involved:
high level of corruption (as measured
by CPI - corruption perception index),
excessive state intervention in the economy,
as well as inefficiency of the judicial system.
In terms of efficiency of governance structures of
the state, research indicates a prevalent practice
of subordinating long-term goals to short-term
political gains, an underestimation of continuity
and the role of experts, as well as consultative
bodies and procedures in the policy-making
(Raciborski, 2006). Decision-makers perceive
experts’ opinions more in terms of support for
decisions that were already taken, rather than
a factor determining the content of decisions.
Similarly, little understanding for social and
civil dialogue, as well as for socio-economic
programming is observed (Hausner, 2007).
Consequently, decisions in the sphere of socioeconomic
policy produce ineffective, façade
and poorly legitimized solutions. At the same
time, Europeanization of the administration
was visible mostly among young officials of
departments dealing with European affairs
in each ministry. Research conducted in
2005 among Polish officials pointed out their
perceptions of Western administrations as
more professional, less hierarchical, more open
and transparent (Kochanowicz, et al., 2007).
Meanwhile, Polish administration continues
to function within a culture of secrecy, where
power is understood more in terms of privileges
than responsibility, and where technological
and organizational distance from Western
counterparts still poses serious governance
problems.
Empirical material gathered by R. Inglehart
indicates that beliefs and values typical for
the socialist economic system have, to a large
extent, survived the transformation process and
co-exist with the new capitalist institutions.
Polish economic culture is characterized by
egalitarian attitudes, a lack of trust towards
private business and more importance