Magyar’s Hungary expels 10 Russian diplomats and dismantles Fidesz’s county fiefdoms (Day 122 of the Tisza government)

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Hungary’s historic budget hole threatens to prolong economic stagnation for ordinary households well beyond this year

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By Petra Pavlovičová,
Budapest
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  • Péter Magyar is a “disgusting, cowardly worm”, opposition politician said – and received a one-week punishment.
  • Foreign minister Anita Orbán: ‘Russians, go home’.
  • Fidesz sinecures and historical names for counties are being scrapped.
  • Historic budget deficit of €6.34bn.

An opposition politician compared the prime minister to a worm – thus opening the autumn session of the Hungarian National Assembly.

Meanwhile, in the past 16 years there has not been such an unambiguous and decisive diplomatic move as the one taken by the Tisza government by expelling Russian diplomats.

At the same time, the overhaul of the system of public administration has begun, with the first losers set to be Fidesz’s local bigwigs.

Meanwhile, the budget deficit is at a historic high. We explain why, and which specific measures to revive the economy are still awaiting adoption.

‘Péter Magyar is a disgusting, cowardly worm‘

On Monday (7 September), the regular autumn session of the Hungarian National Assembly began with a speech by prime minister Péter Magyar. During the extraordinary summer sessions, the public had already become used to verbal sparring between the premier and opposition politicians being a daily feature of parliamentary work.

On Monday, however, this debate hit rock bottom: László Toroczkai, leader of the far-right Mi Hazánk party, compared the prime minister to a disgusting, cowardly worm.

In his speech, Magyar said that Toroczkai had been going to ministries with his Fidesz friends “for a chat” in order to lobby for family businesses.

Toroczkai called this an extremely serious and despicable lie, and at the same time called on the prime minister to apologise to him immediately. “If he knows of such a case, let him say here and now, immediately, on behalf of which of our family businesses we were lobbying at the ministry!” the Mi Hazánk leader said.

And he continued his tirade.

“It seems he is confusing me with himself… he was the one who was involved in cases under the System of National Cooperation, suspected of corruption, I have never had anything to do with anything like that. Let him immediately ask… or since we were already on first-name terms… ask for forgiveness, right now, and do not run away like a cowardly, disgusting worm!”

Speaker of parliament Ágnes Forsthoffer called on Toroczkai to choose his words more carefully and made it clear that his speech was unworthy of the work of the National Assembly. Later, the speaker banned the Mi Hazánk leader from entering parliament for this week.

Toroczkai may be present in the chamber only for votes.

Toroczkai and Magyar went on to explain on social media who had said what and why to the other. Toroczkai said he would not apologise for calling him a “worm”, arguing that Magyar himself regularly called others liars, crooks or criminals. In his view, the speaker of parliament was applying double standards.

Magyar has significantly changed the tone and dynamics of debates and communication in parliament; he really does regularly use words like thief, crook and liar – primarily towards Fidesz politicians. The opposition is no slouch either: they also shower coalition politicians and the prime minister with choice epithets.

At the same time, in the heat of debate, no one – neither government nor opposition politicians – should under any circumstances stoop so low as to compare their political opponent to a worm. There is no argument that could explain this or make it acceptable.

Anita Orbán: Russians, go home!

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Author Bio

Petra Pavlovičová is a reporter at EUobserver. She studied Political Sciences and Journalism in Brussels. She worked and gathered experience in Belgian daily press Le Soir, Slovak redaction of Dennik SME and in the Investigative Center of Jan Kuciak in Bratislava.

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