Former PM Gyurcsány: Opposition will win if it joins together

The opposition parties will win the general election in 2022 if they join together, Ferenc Gyurcsány, leader of the Democratic Coalition (DK), said at a party congress on Sunday.

A recent online survey shows that 93 percent of 108,000 respondents said the opposition should work together, with a single candidate for prime minister and a joint list and candidates in all individual constituencies, the leftist leader said.

The former prime minister said the outcome of the local elections was proof that opposition cooperation worked. Opposition figures in cities and their districts should not fear debate, he said, adding that the opposition is diverse but if they run cities effectively they will run the country effectively, too.

Learning the art of compromise now will serve the opposition in 2022, too, he said.

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Meanwhile, Gyurcsány said the Fidesz-led government had failed to secure a majority for “dismantling” the European Union. He also said the “regime” that has run Hungary for the past ten years was showing signs of cracking.

At the same time, the decks on the opposition side have been reshuffled, with one-time larger parties losing their influence and smaller parties now coming to the fore.

He insisted that DK was now the largest party in opposition. But the common will to refashion Hungary into a European republic and a democracy would be the true driving force of the opposition, he added.

Read alsoFormer PM Gyurcsány: Opposition either wins together or not at all

On the topic of the new virus, he said international cooperation and effective local action were needed but, he insisted, the Hungarian government fell short and many citizens had lost confidence that the government was able to handle the issue.

He said more money should be spent on protective measures and less on state propaganda.

Regarding climate protection, Gyurcsány accused Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of lacking sincerity on the issue, and he called for an environment and climate protection ministry to be set up.

Source: MTI