An era has come to an end

The era when we could say that everything West of us is good, and all we should do is copy what's happening there is over, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated on Tuesday in Szekszárd at the inauguration of the Sipos Márton Swimming Complex.

People West of Hungary may be richer than we are, but we can no longer say that over there everything is better than here, Mr Orbán said.

Security has gone, migrants have broken in, parallel societies are coming into being, Christian traditions are dying out, children and families can no longer feel safe, and meanwhile, Europe's economy is continually falling behind compared with other rising economies of the world. Hungary has two options: either we ourselves will follow them, or we will pursue our own Hungarian path, he stressed.

He added that if Hungary, too, were to embark on the path that was being followed West of us, we should expect that not only Hungary's security and peace would be lost, but so would be the opportunity for people to get together to attend events such as the inauguration of the Sipos Márton Swimming Complex.

If we opt for the Brussels path, it means that taxes will be raised and the money so collected will be sent to Brussels, and from Brussels to Ukraine, the Prime Minister pointed out.

If we opt for this path, we will end up the way they did. We will be on the brink of a war, migrants will be knocking at our door, and we, too, will be paying the same high taxes as people in the West, the Prime Minister laid down.

Mr Orbán also recalled that Tuesday marked the tenth anniversary of the "Battle of Röszke" when migrants attempted to forcefully break into Hungary.

If, however, "we have enough courage and continue what we started, we may remain on the path of national governance." Then Hungary will remain an island of peace; will not go to war; will not take responsibility for a war it has nothing to do with; will not send its money to Ukraine; and will not hand over its powers and sovereignty to Brussels, he pointed out.

Mr Orbán recalled that if Hungary's thousand-year-old history could be described with a single word - one that amply describes the present situation as well - it would be 'notwithstanding.' He said when we lost World War I and then World War II, our opponents decided to draw Hungary's border in a way and to create conditions for us which cannot be survived. If we survived nonetheless, than we should forever remain poor and small. This is the Hungarian fate, this is what was intended for us after both World Wars I and II, complicated with a spell of communism, he said.

"We are here nonetheless. We are here, and we will be here," he said, promising that if he is given the opportunity to continue to govern, Hungary will again be a great and rich country.

He also said the construction of the swimming complex was resolved nine years previously as part of the Modern Cities Programme. At the time, they concluded an agreement on all the things that would be built in Szekszárd, including a swimming pool. The programme was based on the underlying concept that the government did not want to tell from Budapest what people in the countryside should spend the grants received from Budapest as well as from other places on; instead, they allowed, even provoked the locals to state what they needed. He added that Minister for Construction János Lázár was himself from the countryside, and they knew precisely that the country consisted of more than just Budapest.

Regarding the construction of the swimming complex, he said when they finally manage to bring such chaotic affairs to a conclusion, they tend to say 'there was what there was, there will be what there will be, Fidesz.'

He recalled that they had received maximum trust from the locals; in the 2022 parliamentary elections, the government parties received more votes in Szekszárd than ever before. This was enormous support, he said.

At the same time, thanks to the hard work completed, in the 2024 municipal elections, too, they received more votes than ever before, he indicated.

Mr Orbán said in 2010 in Szekszárd, the number of job-seekers stood at 15,000, while today there are fewer than 5,000, and in the city unemployment is below 3 per cent. This means two things: on the one hand, that the people want to work, and on the other, that workplaces have recently come into being where people can work, he observed.

He added that as part of the Modern Cities Programme, projects worth HUF 22 billion had been implemented in Szekszárd, including HUF 8 billion for a knowledge centre, HUF 3 billion for infrastructure development, HUF 7.5 billion for a swimming complex and HUF 3.5 billion for an industrial park.

In Tolna County, the government helped 37 businesses within the framework of the Demján Sándor Programme to the value of HUF 2.5 billion, while the Baross Gábor Reindustrialisation Credit Programme has brought HUF 22 billion to the county. At present, 11 development programmes are under way to the value of HUF 5 billion, while in the district, some 270 projects and developments are being implemented from grants worth HUF 20 billion, he listed.

All this shows that there is a war in vain, there is inflation in vain, there are sanctions in vain, there is plenty of potential yet to be explored in the City of Szekszárd and also in the government, he stated in summary.

Mr Orbán recalled that the eponym of the swimming complex, Márton Sipos, a native of Szekszárd, had held the world record in breaststroke for 100 metres in 1922.

He highlighted that on Tuesday, they had inaugurated not just a swimming complex, but also a space for a community.

Sport, in actual fact, builds communities, and today, what every city, every village in Hungary needs most is for people to meet, to talk to each other, to understand each other, to do things together, and sport is an excellent opportunity for this also here, in Szekszárd, he pointed out.

"Szekszárd is a fantastic place, a city which everyone loves, thanks to its winemakers, and everyone respects, thanks to [the poet and writer] Babits," Mr Orbán said.