Orbán calls on opposition to ‘side with nation’ on ‘national affairs’

When it comes to “national affairs”, opposition parties should never vote against Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in parliament on Monday.

Addressing lawmakers on the opening day of the legislature’s autumn session, Orbán said that in the general election five months ago, the Hungarian people had decided to give their confidence in the government and the go-ahead to continue its family, economic and national policies, and to continue taking action against migration.

“If you don’t want to get stuck in the past and in the same old rut, you may consider following the people,” the prime minister told opposition lawmakers. “It really helps.”

“In this way, the issues that are important for the Hungarian people and their lives can be represented in the legislature,” Orbán said.

He added that the Hungarian government will not give up its right to control the country’s borders in his address at the opening of parliament’s autumn season.

“We will not allow anyone to take away one iota of our border control rights,” Orbán said, adding that “we have more skill in controlling the border than anyone in Brussels”.

Orbán insisted that Hungary’s border guards were “not only professionals but patriots”, who had taken an oath to protect the country and “this is something money cannot buy”.

He added that “Brussels does not aim to protect the European Union’s borders but to set up a reception service to manage immigration rather than to stop it.”

“Hungary is neither a passageway nor refugee camp; if we wanted to mix with other cultures or civilisations we would hold consultations first,” Orbán said. He added that he would “not advocate that idea to the Hungarian people”.