Opposition slams government for lacklustre preparation for 2nd wave, economic crisis

Hungary’s opposition parties have slammed the government for what they claim have been its lacklustre preparations for the second wave of the novel coronavirus epidemic.

After Prime Minister Viktor Orbán addressed parliament on the first day of the autumn session on Monday, the biggest opposition fraction Jobbik group leader Péter Jakab said Hungary was on course to lose the battle against the epidemic.

“The country is facing a tough time because, as well as combatting the virus, it must also battle the prime minister,” he said.

He called on the government to offer free testing, contribute 80 percent of lost wages, extend and increase the job-seeker’s allowance, and give the chance of retirement for people above the age of 60 who have lost their job.

Opposition Democratic Coalition leader Ferenc Gyurcsány criticised the government “for failing to prepare” for the second wave of the epidemic during the summer.

“They steal and lie very well but they cannot govern” Gyurcsány said.

LMP deputy group leader Erzsébet Schmuck said the prime minister was “blithely unaware of people’s everyday problems and difficulties”, including the steep rise in food prices. With the arrival of the second wave of the epidemic, she said it was uncertain how the country’s health-care system could cope. She insisted there was a shortage of skilled staff. “This turn of events is the consequence of the government’s bad policies, including low wages in health care”, she added.