Cenckiewicz said in a statement posted on X that he submitted his resignation on Wednesday, accusing Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government of disregarding court rulings and unjustifiably revoking his access to classified information.
"I made this decision with a sense of responsibility for the state, as one of its key institutions has been subjected to brutal interference and pressure," he wrote.
The dispute centres on Cenckiewicz’s security clearance. On April 15, Poland’s Supreme Administrative Court (NSA) dismissed appeals by the prime minister’s office against earlier rulings that had overturned a decision to revoke his clearance.
A government spokesman said at the time that the court’s ruling did not automatically restore Cenckiewicz’s access to classified information, adding that he would remain without clearance pending further review.
Cenckiewicz argued that the situation had "effectively paralysed" the functioning of the National Security Bureau (BBN) and made it impossible for him to continue in the role to which he was appointed in August 2025 by President Karol Nawrocki.
The presidential office said his resignation took effect on Thursday. Gen. Andrzej Kowalski, Cenckiewicz’s deputy, has been appointed acting head of the bureau.
Nawrocki's spokesman, Rafał Leśkiewicz, echoed Cenckiewicz's criticism, saying the government's actions had disrupted the bureau's work by depriving its chief of access to classified information.
He told reporters, however, that Cenckiewicz would remain with the President's Office to chair Nawrocki's Security and Defence Council and would also advise the president on national security in a different role.
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Source: IAR, PAP