Hungarian News

Picking-up Speed

• January 6, 2022
• István
• 7 Comments

Before I come to the topic of today 2 facts that show the state of the rule-of-law in Hungary during the year 12 of uninterrupted rule-of-Orbán. Both are connected to our old friend, the devil’s advocate. We remember his first appearance, when he described not only the sex and cocaine parties the former mayor of Győr Borkai had on board of a yacht he never could pay for with prostitutes that were paid for by EU grants. But this was the juicy part only, the criminal part was how he and his friends were involved in the purchase of land by Audi. The car manufacturer was forced to pay nearly 5 times the real price. Yesterday the prosecution office decided that no crime happened in this case ►HU. A few days ago the devil’s advocate hinted that the minister of justice of Hungary would have a lesbian love affair. One could ask: Where is the problem? The devil’s advocate himself stated (even in English, not in Hungarian) “love is love.” And that’s right! But in this case of course the prosecution office decided to act ►HU!

The opposition is picking-up speed. Of course campaigning for the 2022 elections is forbidden right now, so everybody needs to choose the words very carefully. More or less luckily the opposition is collecting signatures for the referendum to cancel the Fudan campus being built on Hungarian taxpayer’s costs instead of the long planned “student city,” which would give home to all those Hungarian students, that have bad or even no chance to rent a room in Budapest. The other allowed question out of 6 proposals is to pay unemployment benefits again for 270 days, after Orbán reduced it to 90 days. This at least offers the legal possibility to do something. Of course the election office has waited until short before the holidays with handing over the sheets for signatures – honi soit qui mal y pense. The bad news is that still only half the needed signatures are collected, so everybody allowed to vote in Hungarian elections should sign as soon as possible, if not done yet. Sign at these places: ►HU.

In this context yesterday a press conference in Nyugati tér of the tops of the opposition parties took place. Lord mayor of Budapest Gergely Karácsony declared that about 100 000 of the needed 200 000 signatures are collected.

According to Klára Dobrev (DK) this referendum campaign will bring opposition parties closer for the upcoming election campaign.

Anna Donáth, chairwoman of Momentum, drew the attention to the housing crisis, to which the Student City, originally planned but replaced with the Fudan campus, would provide the best answer.

Ágnes Kunhalmi, co-chair of MSZP, recalled the series of demonstrations taking place exactly 3 years ago, which were launched due to the amendment of the labour code, which became known as the slave act.

Máté Kanász-Nagy, co-chair of the LMP, according to Magyar Hang responsible for communicating in area of social affairs for the united opposition, said, “We should not spend on the elite university of China, but on the student city, which provides housing for Hungarian students.”

Jobbik was not represented by his chair, but by Dániel Zsiga-Kárpát. He declared that in all cases over the Chinese interests the Hungarian national interests are paramount. According to him, pushing the Student City does not serve the latter.

Péter Márki-Zay’s appearance was accompanied by shouting of “MZP.” He took it more general and said that we have now the “most corrupt government in the 1000-year-old Hungary” and repeatedly used his slogan “felfelé kell tartanunk” (we must keep upwards.)

More about the press conference you can find here: on telex ►HU or on Magyar Hang ►HU.