In the space of a few days, a series of setbacks disrupted the top of the Hungarian state. Serial resignations, scandals and bad news follow one another, weakening the power of its main leader like never before.
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It all started with a presidential pardon. The Minister of Justice and the President of the Republic, two close to Viktor Orban, pardoned a former deputy director of a children’s home. He was convicted in 2022 for covering up the child criminal actions of his superior.
It was the foreign press which revealed the existence of this grace granted in 2023 at the time of the Pope’s visit. The affair immediately turned into a scandal. The consequences were immediate, including the resignations of the Minister of Justice and the President, Saturday February 10, 2024. They thus made amends by admitting to having made an error, but it was too late. The affair now affects the highest echelons of Hungarian power and in particular Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
A video denouncing corruption of the highest degree
Since then, a new twist has taken place. The ex-husband of the Minister of Justice also resigned. The man knows perfectly well the mysteries of Hungarian power and cannot bear to see his ex-wife used as a scapegoat. In quick succession, he announced that he no longer wanted to be part of a system in which the real leaders hide behind women’s skirts, then resigned from two public companies in which he held positions of responsibility.
He then gave an interview on the YouTube channel Partizàn, one of the few independent media in the country, in which he points out the endemic corruption of Hungary and in particular the great adviser of Viktor Orban. The video was a success. It has been viewed more than 1.5 million times in a country of less than 10 million inhabitants.
Today, the matter is still not over because the opposition has seized it. Viktor Orban thought the matter was closed with the resignation of his loved ones, but that was without taking into account the call to demonstrate, from the opposition with influencers of the country. They are calling for a new rally next Friday, in solidarity with the victims betrayed by the presidential pardon.
A bad patch after many setbacks
This bad patch comes after his disappointment at the last European Council, where he had to fold in front of the 26 other states on the Ukrainian issue. Some MEPs accused the Commission of giving in to the “blackmail” of the Hungarian leader, in the face of Hungary’s blockage in granting new aid to Ukraine. The country continues to suffer from freezing of part of European aid.
The disgrace is also heightened after the opening by Europe of an infringement procedure following a controversial law, legislation establishing a supervisory authority intended to prevent “foreign interference” in the electoral process and “protect sovereignty” from the country. The EU is concerned about a law which calls into question the principle of democracy and respect for the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.
As if that were not enough, we learned that Hungary was in recession in 2023 and that its growth forecasts of more than 4% for 2024 are considered unrealistic. In short, clouds are gathering over Hungary, and more particularly over Viktor Orban’s Hungary.