National Day / Alternative Movement TMK by Péter Magyar
The most listeners at the speeches on the national holiday were not the Prime Minister or representatives of the opposition parties, but rather a newcomer to politics.
The lawyer Péter Magyar founded the new opposition movement “Stand up, Hungary!” (TMK). A month ago, the senior representative of state companies – who has since resigned – unpacked after his ex-wife, the former Justice Minister Judit Varga, withdrew completely from political life in connection with the pardon scandal. Magyar now saw the opportunity to settle accounts with the Orbán system. On the revolutionary holiday of March 15th, more citizens were looking forward to his political speech on Andrássy út than any other opposition leader could rally behind them – even Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s tens of thousands of listeners at the National Museum exceeded the curious crowd.
“Stand up, Hungarians!”
Magyar announced the creation of the “Stand up, Hungarians!” movement, which he hopes to transform into a political party in due course. He compared his listeners to the revolutionaries of 1848, because today people again wanted big changes. Hungary is run by a small group of oligarchs close to the government who do not have the country’s interests in mind when using EU funds, but only want to enrich themselves personally. But even if Fidesz dismantles democracy, there remains hope for Hungarians to replace the governing party in elections – this is what he wants to strive for in the future with his center formation, beyond the trench warfare that is so typical today.
His demands include a reform of the “Prussian” education system in order to prepare children for life. A higher level of education and healthcare is conceivable simply by redirecting the “utopian” amounts that Fidesz wastes on its government PR. Magyar clearly differentiated himself from the left when it came to EU funds. It is not possible to block the flow of money for Hungary in Brussels; rather, the use of the funding must be sensibly and better controlled. This also includes Hungary’s accession to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO).
Not a Messiah, but…
The former top candidate of the opposition alliance and head of the bourgeois MMN, Péter Márki-Zay, threw his support behind his new movement immediately after Péter Magyar’s mass rally. He sees many disappointed Fidesz voters in the audience and believes that both Fidesz and the (left-wing) opposition must rightly fear losing votes to the TMK.
Unlike some voters, Márki-Zay does not consider Péter Magyar to be a “messiah,” but hopes that the new movement will finally shake citizens out of their apathy. A Magyar is particularly credible in the Fidesz camp because his ex-wife, as justice minister, had the deepest insight into the structures of the Orbán system. It is still unclear how the People’s Party “Hungary for All” (MMN) of the mayor of Hódmezővásárhely relates to the TMK: Péter Márki-Zay had just announced that the MMN was aiming for two mandates in the next European Parliament.
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