Gyurcsány strikes back
February 25th, 2014As former PM Gyurcsány denies having leaked his famous “lie-speech”, left-wing columnists suggest that the publication of the tapes and even the riots which followed could have been orchestrated by Fidesz politicians. Pro-government commentators, on the other hand, contend that Gyurcsány’s involvement in the leak is beyond doubt.
Commenting on the released files of the Őszöd investigation (see BudaPost February 24) on ATV on Saturday, former PM Gyurcsány denied any involvement in the 2006 leak. He also said that the final report of the investigation (which is still unpublished) contradicts the accusations implied in the published files. Ferenc Gyurcsány added that the leaked documents were sent to the press by Fidesz politicians, which suggests to him that Fidesz was preparing for the 2006 riots following the publication of the tape. In a separate talk on the same TV station, Fidesz first Vice-President Lajos Kósa admitted that he knew of the recording prior to its broadcast.
Writing in Népszabadság, Róbert Friss dismisses the speculation that it was in the interest of PM Gyurcsány to leak the tapes days before the announcement of austerity measures. Commenting on Mr. Kósa’s admission that he knew of the in advance, the left-wing columnist contends that Fidesz used the recording to boost its popularity before the 2006 municipal elections. In an aside, he adds that the selective publication of the investigation reports is also part of the current electoral campaign strategy Fidesz, to manipulate public opinion.
Magyar Nemzet’s Zsuzsa Körmendy, however, takes the published testimonies at face value and contends that PM Gyurcsány’s involvement in the leak is beyond doubt. The fact that Gyurcsány still considers the Őszöd speech as a good and honest address that he can be proud of, is a clear indication of his “moral insanity”, Körmendy remarks.
The accusation that Fidesz orchestrated the 2006 riots are totally mad, Zsolt Bayer writes in Magyar Hírlap. The pro-government commentator wonders what else Fidesz politicians could have done other than publish the tapes once they were given the recordings which prove that Gyurcsány lied in the 2006 electoral campaign.