One of Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar's main promises is to investigate corruption accumulated during Viktor Orban's rule and return illegally acquired state property. Magyar presents his initiative as an attempt to dismantle a system he describes as a “mafia state“, Vesti.bg reports.
In June, the government launched Operation “Purgatory“, and at the end of September, the newly created anti-corruption agency announced its first four investigations related to cases from the Orban era. According to Magyar, the misuse of public funds during the former prime minister's 16-year rule caused damage equivalent to between 8 and 10% of the country's GDP. Orbán rejects accusations that he allowed corruption to go unchecked.
Among the most important questions facing the new government is how far the investigation of former high-ranking officials can go without the political authorities becoming a direct participant in the work of the judiciary.
In recent days, two MPs and former ministers from Orbán's government have found themselves at the center of anti-corruption actions.
Among them is former Culture Minister Balazs Hanko, who is under investigation for the illegal distribution of around 50 million euros from the National Cultural Fund. According to the charges, some of the funds were also directed towards political goals.
The other MP is former Minister of National Development Miklós Szeszták, one of the richest members of the Hungarian parliament. He is facing charges related to an alleged bribe of around 30 million euros together with an accomplice. The investigation covers the period 2015-2018 and contracts in the fields of transport and construction.
After his immunity was lifted, Szeszták appeared before the prosecutor's office and was detained. Hanko initially remained in parliament with his family, before later being taken into pre-trial detention.
Madyar himself also waived his immunityParadoxically, during the same period, Madyar himself requested that his parliamentary immunity be lifted in a case of alleged theft.
The case dates back to June 2024, when Madyar took the phone of a man who was filming him without permission in a nightclub and threw it into the Danube River. The prime minister said he wanted to bear the same responsibility that he demands from others.
However, this decision also carries a political risk for him, since a possible conviction could affect his parliamentary mandate.
In parliament, Magyar used the occasion to criticize the scale of the alleged abuses during the previous administration, comparing the value of the charges against him with the billions for which he accuses the close associates of “Fidesz“.
The balance between justice and political pressureMagyar supports the rank-and-file employees in the judicial system, but accuses the leadership of the prosecution of having covered up corruption cases related to Orbán's administration over the years.
It is here that the main difficulty facing Operation “Purgatory“ emerges. The new government is under strong public pressure to take swift action against those who benefited from the previous system, but at the same time it must demonstrate that investigations are conducted according to legal procedures and not on political orders.
Magyar has already faced criticism for interfering too actively in the work of justice. On the other hand, according to sociological surveys, a significant part of Hungarians perceive Orbán's rule as systematically corrupt and describe it as a “mafia state“.
Thus, the new prime minister finds himself facing a double challenge - to fulfill his promise to investigate Orbán's legacy and at the same time to convince the public that the fight against corruption will not turn into a political showdown.