photo - PR
The former president made the remarks in an extensive interview with Polish commercial radio station Radio Zet.
Speaking of the centre-right Civic Platform party, which won a second term in office last October (as senior partner in a coalition government), Walesa said he regretted that no decent alternative had emerged.
“I'm sorry to say that at the moment we don't have [an alternative], but once again this is because our countrymen are not engaged,” he complained.
“Our countrymen are not establishing parties, our countrymen not going out to vote – so here is the problem,” he said.
Walesa also took the opportunity to criticise Janusz Palikot, leader of the liberal, anticlerical Palikot's Movement, which won a surprise ten percent share of the vote in October's general election.
Walesa said that Palikot's attempts to remove crosses from public buildings and the Polish parliament itself were ill-founded.
“Let him search for a country where this is possible, but not Poland – be realistic,” he said.
“Poland survived thanks to the cross, thanks to faith,” he continued.
“How many times were we not on the map of Europe?” he mused.
“We survived thanks to the cross, and that's why it's forbidden to interfere with it,” he said.
Nevertheless, he had harsh words for right-wing Catholic radio station, Radio Maryja, and its owner Father Tadeusz Rydzyk.
Walesa said that the station “does harm to Poland,” but that he listens to it so that he's kept informed about what the radio is up to.
“What he [Father Rydzyk] says about the government, about Poland, about patriotism, is incredible,” he said.
“They think that they are the only patriots – no one else is a patriot,” he reflected.
“And what's more, they're still going round the whole world talking rubbish about attacks,” he said, alluding to conspiracy theories regarding the Smolensk air disaster. (nh/pg)