55 Joanna Marszałek-Kawa : Comments on the Issue of the Institution Poland is not Switzerland. Despite numerous assurances from Polish political elites and citizens' expectations, the quality of Polish democracy, particularly of political debate, which is full of negative emotions, is far from this model. Th ere is a popular saying in the Polish language: "to work like a Swiss clock". It refers to conscientiousness when it comes to fulfi lling one's duties. Other qualities that come to our minds when we think of Swiss people are: accurate, thorough, diligent, inquisitive, reliable, methodical, careful, and punctual. All these personal traits are not specifi c to Polish people, though. For Poles it is always too early until it is too late (Malaparte, 2004). We are totally diff erent nations. Th ese diff erences concern not only the standard of living, the way professional obligations are treated, customs, religiousness, and the political system, but also the way the idea of the common good is defi ned and built. It does not change the fact that each time we talk about the institution of a referendum in Poland, we always seek analogy to Swiss constitutional solutions (Sarnecki, 1978). It is obvious that what is the foundation and undoubted value of the democratic system is citizens' right to directly participate in the exercise of state authority. It is refl ected not only in their right of legislative initiative (Jabłoński, 2002; Eckhardt, n.d.) or the people's veto, which is stipulated in some national laws, e.g., in Switzerland. Under this law, proper entities (citizens) have the right to object to an act that is due to enter into force. It is also materialised in the form of electoral laws-stipulated in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 2 April 1997 (Journal of Laws, 1997)-implemented during elections and in the institution of a referendum (Linder, 1996). institution of a nationwide referendum using the example of the referendum of 6 September 2015. We also discuss the history of this institution in Poland and address the issue of its legal foundations, as well as present arguments of the followers and opponents of this form of direct democracy. It is also necessary to analyse the motives behind the initiating entity's decision concerning the organisation of a nationwide referendum from a broader perspective and to evaluate its implications in the sphere of politics.