“There’s a fake-news scandal tied to Szolo Street in Budapest. A prison called a correctional institution operates there” Viktor Orban said in an interview with Kossuth Radio’s Good Morning, Hungary program. The Prime Minister explained that the director of the institution had been running prostitutes, which had nothing to do with the boys held in the facility.
He noted that within what appears to be a web with foreign ties, a piece of disinformation had begun to be constructed, suggesting that the crime of sexual abuse of children had been committed—with alleged ties to the government.
The PM Orban declared:
Pedophilia is the most serious crime. If someone falsely accuses another of committing it, that too is a serious crime.
"Such false claims are serious even against a private person—but if they are made against someone holding public responsibility, then it’s doubly serious. If it’s done to discredit the police, bring down a minister or topple a government, it’s three times as serious,” he added.
The prime minister tied the scandal to a broader problem:
Mr Orban stressed that all government members are innocent and warned that the accusations will carry serious legal consequences.
He said that opposition actors, when they made these allegations, knew full well they would face punishment: “They’ll get exactly what they knew was coming.” Orban added that he is not one to overcomplicate things: people should behave properly and recommended that
when people are overcome with anger, they should count to ten before speaking.
“This kind of situation emerges when a civilization is fraught with problems. Today Western Europe is in such a state—economic difficulties, migration problems. Things collapse, the quality of life deteriorates causing aggression to rise. This spills into politics.”
He advised everyone to think ten times before speaking, stressing that the government must lead by example in showing Hungary wants to remain a peaceful and safe country.
As an example, he cited the case of antifa: those perpetrators stripped of immunity had already been punished, but Hungary went further and officially declared antifa a terrorist organization at Wednesday’s cabinet meeting.
On Energy and Pipelines
Regarding Russian natural gas, PM Orban said as Hungary has no coastline, gas and oil deliveries are only possible through pipelines. Thus far, no one has been able to point to an alternative pipeline to supply Hungary's energy needs. “If we are cut off from Russian crude oil and natural gas, Hungary’s economic performance will drop by 4 percent,” he said. Hungary will act according to its own interests.
