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Mid-term evaluations of the Fidesz government

June 18th, 2012

Centrist analysts call the economic performance of the government disheartening, while right-wing commentators draw attention to a recent opinion poll according to which voters are still more satisfied with the present government than with the two previous ones.

Véleményvezér asks why Poland and the Polish centre-right is doing so well, and is accepted as an important partner by Germany, while PM Orbán has failed to build alliances either within the „Visegrád countries” (Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Poland), or among EU core nations. His „sad conclusion” is that Fidesz missed a historic opportunity by showing a defiant face to Europe, after the 2010 election victory. The conservative blogger who is often critical of the government, accuses Fidesz of having messed up the economy and meddled with basic political institutions in order to cement its power in Hungary.

In Magyar Nemzet, Szabolcs Szerető comments on the June 15th debate in Parliament where party groups summed up their interpretations of the first two years of Orbán’s term in office. He believes the government is justified in listing the re-structuring of the enormous national debt as a major step forward. Nonetheless, he continues, they have not taken adequate steps to alleviate poverty. The debate in Parliament, Szerető argues, raised those issues where the government should be more careful and convincing in explaining its goals and actions: the flat tax, corruption and the planned reorganization of the public health system are all issues that should not be taken lightly. Yet, while the opposition claims the government has failed, the numbers prove otherwise. This government is rated by the public higher than its predecessors,  Szerető remarks, adding that “this means that not all is lost”.

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