Hungarian activist and anti-corruption campaigner Péter Juhász posted a picture on Facebook holding two large bin bags of what appear to be shredded documents. He claims that the bags were collected near the Prime Minister’s Cabinet Office, headed by outgoing minister Antal Rogán, following the Tisza Party’s two-thirds election victory.
The alleged shredding of documents by outgoing Fidesz politicians first emerged during Péter Magyar’s press conference after his Tisza Party’s election victory on Monday 13 April.
The Szijjártó Claim
In a dramatic scene, a colleague walked up to the future prime minister, handing him a piece of paper, to which Péter Magyar said Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó had begun to shred documents related to Russian sanctions.
When asked about the document shredding allegation made by Péter Magyar during a Telex interview, Péter Szijjártó claimed that the accusations were “pure nonsense”, asking the interviewer, “What document would we have shredded?”.
Szijjártó to Telex: There are many countries we cooperate with more closely than Russia
‘Stop Shredding’
In a Facebook post, Péter Magyar urged: “Let’s stop the fleeing mafia together!”, accompanied by a link to the webpage Stop Darálás (‘Stop Shredding’), calling for those with information to report the destruction of documents.
The webpage reminds readers that state documents are not private property but belong to “the community, to the public, and to accountability”. Document submission is only accessible through the privacy-focused web browser Tor Browser.
After 16 Years...
According to Hungary’s Fundamental Law, the President of Hungary must convene the inaugural session of the new parliament within thirty days of the election. But there has been no government handover in Hungary for sixteen years.
Planning a wedding, moving flat, losing weight—these can all be done in 30 days if you hurry. Handing over a government that has seeped into the courts, public media, and regulatory bodies, however, will likely require cutting a few corners.
New Shredders on Order
Coincidence? Earlier this week HVG reported that the Ministry of the Interior ordered two new Rexel Momentum Extra XP418+ jam-free confetti document shredders.
Magyar Péter’s Tisza Party may have won a historic two-thirds majority, but until President Tamás Sulyok, elected by a Fidesz–KDNP majority, convenes the inaugural session, the government is free to do as it pleases.
This is a developing story, and not all details have yet emerged.