Péter Magyar, winner of the Hungarian elections, stated this Friday that the outgoing administration of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is destroying sensitive and confidential documents. The conservative politician, leader of the Tisza party, which overwhelmingly defeated the veteran national-populist last Sunday, who had been in power for 16 years, hinted that the outgoing team is trying to avoid investigations into corruption. “The destruction of evidence harms the Hungarian state,” Magyar declared in a video published on his Facebook page, in which he announced the launch of a website for officials and anonymous citizens to report cases of malpractice.
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The Tisza party has stated that it is receiving reports that documents are being destroyed in ministries, government offices, including the National Judicial Office, and companies that flourished under Orbán’s government, Reuters reports.
On Tuesday, Magyar already claimed that the outgoing Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjártó, was destroying documents at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Budapest. Szijjarto has been involved in a scandal these weeks for passing confidential EU information to Russia and to his Moscow counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, as published in an investigative report, which even disseminated the transcript of a call between the two ministers. “They are shredding documents related to the [EU sanctions on Russia],” Magyar said.
Meanwhile, Orbán, who is still licking his wounds after the harsh blow of defeat, assured this Friday that he will rebuild his party, Fidesz, reorganize it, and come back “stronger.” In an interview with a Hungarian radio broadcast on his social networks, the politician denied any wrongdoing.
However, with Hungary’s financial problems, a country of 9.7 million inhabitants and the 18th largest economy in the EU, the national-populist — ally of American Donald Trump, Russian Vladimir Putin, and Israeli Benjamin Netanyahu, and who until now had been a model (and even financier) for illiberal forces in Europe — has acknowledged that reports of corruption and accumulated wealth of members of his party and businessmen close to Fidesz have probably contributed to his downfall. “As I am the party president… I must take 100% of this responsibility myself,” he said. He explained that Fidesz will choose a new leadership in June.
With the defeat of the national-populist politician, relations between the EU and Hungary (long the unruly partner, who kept the Union blocked on decisions related to Russia and Ukraine) are beginning to be reconsidered. The European Commission has frozen about 18 billion euros in community funds due to Budapest’s breaches and its authoritarian drift. Now, Brussels and Magyar are looking for ways to address the situation.
European officials have already arrived in Hungary to analyze the steps to follow and start talks with Magyar before he takes office as prime minister (something he plans to do on May 9 or 10). The unlocking of these funds by the community executive is Magyar’s top priority, a former member of Orbán’s party and now part of the political family of the European People’s Party (EPP). It remains to be seen whether Brussels will loosen up and release part of the funds just with Magyar’s reform announcements once he assumes office, or wait for the new administration to implement the necessary changes.
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