Poland relieves ambassador to France of duties in fake diploma probe

ISTANBUL

Poland on Wednesday temporarily relieved Ambassador to France Jan Emeryk Rosciszewski of his duties amid an ongoing fake diploma investigation.

Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski decided to relieve the ambassador of his duties until all suspicions are resolved, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maciej Wewior told state news agency PAP.

"The Foreign Ministry does not comment on the actions of the services or the justice system. The ambassador began his mission in the spring of 2022. In light of the situation, he has placed himself at the minister’s disposal," Wewior told PAP.

Rosciszewski was detained on Tuesday by the Central Anticorruption Bureau as part of an investigation into obtaining fake MBA degrees from a private management university known as Collegium Humanum, PAP explained, citing website Goniec.pl.

The institution is accused of operating accelerated MBA, bachelor’s, and master’s programs that allowed participants to qualify for supervisory board roles and senior positions in state-owned firms without completing standard academic requirements.

"In Rosciszewski's case, the alleged fraud involved using an MBA degree to serve on the supervisory board of Bank Pocztowy, a subsidiary of Poczta Polska,” the state-run postal service, PAP underscored.

In a statement to the state news agency, Rosciszewski said that he never studied at the Collegium Humanum and is not a graduate of the university, adding that he was released after providing "extensive explanations."

"I declare full cooperation with the prosecutor's office and hope for the matter to be resolved as quickly as possible," he said.