Opposition party calls for hoisting black flag over 25,000th COVID death in Hungary

The opposition Democratic Coalition (DK) has called on the government to drape a black flag over the facade of Parliament to mark the 25,000th death in Hungary since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic last spring.

DK lawmaker Zoltán Varga told a press conference streamed on Facebook that the high number of deaths could have been prevented by “the appropriate use of resources”.

“But seeing the rise in the numbers, Viktor Orbán’s government embarked on the National Consultation asking the public about [the country’s] reopening, and when they realised the extent of the problem, they attempted to put the blame on the opposition,” Varga said.

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He called on the government to admit to its missteps such as “an unwillingness to make effective preparations including mass testing”.