The imminent demise of LMP
Bernadett Szél has finally left LMP.
It is not an everyday occurrence that both of a political party’s co-chairs resign in the course of three months. Ákos Hadházy threw in the towel in August, before his inevitable expulsion from the party would have occurred. Bernadett Szél left the party this morning, taking along with her the former Együtt member Szabolcs Szabó, who for some strange reason decided to join the LMP parliamentary delegation.
As a result, the eight-member LMP delegation shrank to six, and there is a good possibility that Krisztina Hohn, a member of György Gémesi’s Új Kezdet (New beginning) party, might follow. Új Kezdet’s leadership will make a final decision on the subject next week.
The future of Márta Demeter, a relative newcomer to LMP from MSZP, is still a question mark. She has had a hard time with the strange LMP members, who twice turned down her membership application. If both Hohn and Demeter leave, LMP will lose its right to form a parliamentary caucus.
The LMP chairman, László Lóránt Keresztes, decided to ignore telephone calls today, but Antal Csárdi, the winner of District I (downtown Pest), was visible pleased. He foolishly thinks that the departure of Szél and Szabó will “allow the party to concentrate on real problems instead of personnel matters.” Péter Ungár, not surprisingly, is sticking with LMP, but he will “always consider Detti—Szél’s nickname—[his] comrade.”
As for Szél’s political future, it is likely that she will end up working with Ákos Hadházy, her former co-chairman, who is in the midst of an ambitious undertaking. He and his activists are planning to collect one million signatures demanding Hungary’s adherence to the proposed EU Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), which would oversee the proper use of funds provided by the European Union to member states. Of the 28 members, 22 have already announced their willingness to participate. Some, like Ireland, the U.K., and Denmark, will not participate because they have a permanent opt-out from deepening integration in the area of justice, while Sweden believes that its own prosecutor’s office is competent to tackle any misuse of EU funds. The refusals of Poland and Hungary are far too obvious. They argue that such an office would transgress their sovereignty, but everybody knows full well that the real reason lies elsewhere. Any such supervision by an outside body would result in bringing charges to the courts. As things stand now, Chief Prosecutor Péter Polt is Viktor Orbán’s best insurance policy, which he certain doesn’t want to forgo. Very few cases get investigated, and those few that do get dropped.
Collecting one million signatures is not going to be easy, especially since it is likely that the majority of the population has no idea what the EPPO is all about. The collection of signatures began only a few days ago, and for the time being I don’t notice any government anti-propaganda, which indicates to me that Viktor Orbán doesn’t consider it a threat. Szél and Hadházy were a good fit in the past, and it is likely that Szél will join his effort. I might add that now that Szél is on her own she felt free to tell Egon Rónai of ATV this evening that “after the third two-thirds, LMP’s policy of going it alone is not a viable option.” Now she is ready to work with all like-minded people, politicians as well as non-politicians. This is a step in the right direction.
Two people left and perhaps more will follow, but LMP regained its founding father, András Schiffer. Schiffer first resigned his parliamentary seat in 2016, and this past May he quit the party altogether. Now he is returning as an adviser, Népszava reported today. In the last few months Schiffer hasn’t had any formal position in LMP, but he was apparently busy behind the scenes and had no small part in the escalation of personal hostilities within the party. At least this is what Ákos Hadházy claims, who admittedly is no great friend of Schiffer.
I predict that LMP will be gone in no time. At the national election LMP received 7.06% of the votes. The last opinion poll measured a paltry 2% support for the party, and I don’t believe that the trend can be reversed. LMP moved to the right, where its former voters are not willing to follow.
Orbán, “the frequent flyer” on someone else’s money
The answers to the questions that György Szilágyi (Jobbik) and Tamás Harangozó (MSZP) addressed to Viktor Orbán this afternoon will not be forgotten any time soon. Szilágyi confronted Viktor Orbán over his acceptance of valuable gifts in the form of free flights on a private plane from someone who wins a large number of government contracts. He pointed out that the ethical code for government officials forbids the acceptance of such large presents. Here is the answer he received from the prime minister: “Allow me to congratulate you on discovering the obvious (in Hungarian: felfedezte a spanyolviaszt). What you complain about is what I have been doing for the last 30 years and have every intention of doing so in the future.” He explained that it is his duty to be present at all events that are important from the Hungarian point of view.
There is no shame here, and his friends are outright amused
Szilágyi in his rejoinder called attention to the concerns that the compensation for such gifts pose. Orbán acted as if didn’t want to understand the message. Until now no one had any objections to his mode of transportation; moreover, he is not the kind of man who can be obligated to compensate anyone for any gift.
Then it was Tamás Harangozó’s turn. He rose and asked Orbán a simple question: “How many times this year have you traveled on the plane?” Harangozó never received an answer. Instead Orbán repeated that in the last 30 years he has attended sports events related to Hungary every time they fit into his schedule. He doesn’t understand why this topic suddenly became such a “hit.” “I cannot tell you an exact number, but if I have time and my work schedule allows, I will attend the game against the Greek national team next week.” Harangozó rightly pointed out that the reason for the question being raised only now is that Orbán’s trips on a private plane provided by a businessman were hidden from the public in the past. Harangozó also reminded Orbán that what he is doing is against the law and that his continued practice indicates that he considers himself to be above the law.
The videos that capture the two exchanges can be seen on the website of Magyar Hang. I highly recommend taking a look at them. They take your breath away. There isn’t the slightest pretense on the part of the prime minister, who is becoming the sole arbiter of life in Hungary, of following the rule of law.