budapest – A former Hungarian government insider-turned-opposition released an audio recording on Tuesday that he claims is evidence that senior government officials colluded to cover up corruption, threatening Viktor's views on the country's politics. -This is the latest development in a scandal that is shaking Prime Minister Orbán's rule.
The country's biggest protests in years erupted in early February after the president granted pardon to a man imprisoned for covering up a series of child sexual abuses by the director of a state-run orphanage. has become clear.
Mr. Orban's closest allies, including the president and Justice Minister Judith Varga, were forced to resign in the face of public outrage.
The latest allegations come from Varga's ex-husband, Peter Magyar. He is a former political insider who says he became a whistleblower to uncover the scope of the scandal.
On Tuesday morning, he released a recording on Facebook and YouTube of Varga explaining how other government officials had evidence removed from court records to cover up his role in the corrupt deal. .
“They suggested to the prosecutor what should be deleted,” Varga said in the recording, which Magyar said during a conversation in the ex-couple's apartment.
He submitted the tape to the Budapest public prosecutor's office for use as evidence on Tuesday morning.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Varga accused Magyar of domestic violence during their marriage and claimed he made the remarks under threat.
“I said what he wanted to hear in order to leave as soon as possible. Anyone in a situation like this can be under duress and end up saying things they don't mean,” Varga wrote. Magyar later denied the claims in another Facebook post.
Mr. Magyar used to be a high-ranking official in Orbán's political circle, but in February he gave an interview to the popular YouTube channel Partizan, in which he spoke about widespread corruption in the Orbán government and discredited the opposition. He suddenly came into the spotlight after accusing him of conducting a smear campaign.
On March 15, he spoke to a crowd of tens of thousands in Budapest and announced plans to form a new party to replace Hungary's splintered opposition and challenge Fidesz's 14-year grip on power. .
The scandal sparked an unprecedented political crisis within Orbán's government, which has led Hungary since 2010. Magyar's supporters hope his position as a former insider will help bring down Hungary's political system, which many see as a deeply entrenched dictatorship.
The government dismissed him as an opportunist trying to forge a new career after divorcing Varga and losing his jobs at several state-owned companies. But the rise of the Magyars has compounded political headaches for Mr. Orban, including resignations of government officials and a painful economic crisis.
Magyars have decried official corruption in Hungary, accusing Prime Minister Orbán of overseeing an oligarchic crony system that enriches its own pockets through unfairly awarded government contracts.
He has particularly targeted Antal Rogan, a close ally of Mr. Orban and head of government communications and the country's secret services. The recordings released Tuesday purportedly show Logan led the charge in tampering with evidence.
Varga served as Hungary's justice minister until February, when then-president Katalin Novak was embroiled in a political scandal after it was revealed that he had granted amnesty to an accomplice convicted in a child sexual abuse case. He resigned shortly after.
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