Hungary’s president signs a constitutional amendment ending his term
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary’s president signs constitutional amendment on Saturday tenureHe ended a dispute between himself and the country’s new government, which sought to oust him as part of a purge of officials appointed during Viktor Orbán’s reign.
Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar, who has long defeated Orbán explosive choice In April, he repeatedly called on Orbán-appointed president Tamás Sulyok to resign, arguing that he had failed to fulfill his presidential role by neglecting to stand out against the anti-democratic steps of the Orbán government.
When Sulyok refused, MPs from Magyar’s pro-European, centre-right Tisza party accepted the constitutional amendment this week called for his term to end immediately. Sulyok had five days to sign the amendment and did so on the last day before the deadline.
In a video posted on Facebook on Saturday evening, Sulyok, whom Magyar often calls Orbán’s “puppet,” said being forced to sign the amendment was “lasting evidence that the fundamental values of a free society – the rule of law, democracy and the principle of power-sharing – have been trampled for the sake of the interests of power.”
Sulyok’s term will officially end at midnight on Monday, and Parliament Speaker Ágnes Forstoffer will automatically assume his duties until MPs elect a new president with a 30-day term.
Since taking office in May, Magyar’s administration has quickly begun working to dismantle what it calls Orbán’s “mafia” by removing numerous political appointees and heads of institutions perceived to facilitate Orbán’s autocratic government.
New government suspends news service of Hungary’s public television and radio, as Magyar claims served as a “propaganda factory” He supported Orbán’s party and closed down Hungary’s Sovereignty Protection Office, which was seen by Orbán’s opponents as a tool to intimidate critics and silence independent media.
The amendment that removed Sulyok from office also included some judicial reforms, the establishment of an office aimed at investigating financial abuses during the Orbán government, and a 12-year term limit for MPs.
In a post on Facebook on Saturday, Orbán responded to Sulyok signing the amendment by writing that “tyranny is no longer a threat, but a reality.”
“If this can be done to the president, no one will be safe tomorrow,” Orbán wrote.
But in a video statement on Facebook on Saturday, Magyar said that by passing the amendment, “we have fulfilled many of our important commitments and returned what the Orbán regime has been trying to take from the Hungarian people for years.”
He added that he would convene his party on Monday to discuss the candidacy of the next president.
