“Where’s the eight billion?” – senior Fidesz figure Takács Péter confronted over Covid billions

Takács Péter, State Secretary for Health, was caught up in his past at a Buda shopping centre: an unknown man shouted down at him from a moving escalator, demanding to know what had happened to the eight billion forints spent during the Covid pandemic.

Shouting on the escalator

In the footage, a man shouts down at State Secretary for Health Takács Péter:

“Hey, Takács! Where’s the eight billion?”

The politician responded with “up your mother’s”, then added: “I’ll sue you too.”

The scene attracted attention not only because of its tone, but also because it brought the controversy surrounding the ventilators back to the surface and how Covid millions were spent.

A billion-forint contract

The story of Covid millions dates back to the spring of 2020, when, during the first wave of Covid, the Hungarian government signed a 17 billion forint contract with Fourcardinal Tanácsadó Kft. for the procurement of a thousand Chinese ventilators. Due to the global shortage, rapid decisions were made, often without a precise assessment of actual needs.

Fourcardinal’s revenue in 2020 jumped to nearly 50 billion forints, representing a 218-fold increase. Later, 18.2 billion forints in dividends were withdrawn from the company, which was subsequently wound up. The ventilator business thus became not only a health issue but an economic one as well.

Where did the money go? The role of Silk Road

A significant portion of the profit went to another company, SRF Silk Road Fund Holding Zrt., which ultimately received 7/8 of the earnings. This amounted to a total of 15.9 billion forints, of which 8.05 billion was paid out as dividends — this is the sum that has made the ventilator procurement a subject of ongoing debate.

Takács Péter’s brother-in-law, Gábor Kőszegi, also appeared in the company, and according to some claims held a leading role. Although he was not officially an owner, his signing authority was equivalent to that of the managing director, according to Telex.

What do those involved say?

Gábor Kőszegi says several claims are misleading.

He stated: “It is also untrue that Fourcardinal Kft. made a profit of 8 billion forints from ventilators.” He added: “I did not receive any profit derived from the sale of ventilators”, while acknowledging that he did profit from the procurement of other medical devices.

Takács Péter firmly rejected the allegations:

“Neither I nor my family possesses 8 billion forints’ worth of assets”, and emphasised: “The company that employed my brother-in-law brought exactly 0 (zero) ventilators into the country.”

He described all allegations made against him in connection with the ventilators as political attacks.

Investigations, lawsuits and political controversy

The case was examined by several authorities — including KEHI and NAV — and no legal infringement was officially established. Nevertheless, the ventilators procured during the Covid period remain at the centre of political controversy.

Takács Péter has already taken legal action against politicians who voiced the allegations, and has indicated that he will respond in kind in every similar case in the future. The next hearing in the case has been scheduled for August 2026.

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