6 June 2014, Budapest
Fellow Members, Esteemed President of the Republic, President Pál Schmitt, dear Ministers and our Secular and Church executives,
We are here today on the occasion of the formation of the tenth government since the regaining of our national independence and our freedom. It is with respect that I hereby report to the Members of the National Assembly that, in accordance with constitutional procedure, I have selected the members of my Cabinet following my election. The competent committees of Parliament have interviewed them and assured me of their support, and as such, the solid legislative background for the work of my ministers has been established. The members of the Cabinet have today received their assignment documents from the President of the Republic, and accordingly they are ready to take their ministerial oaths.
Distinguished Mr. President,
This is the third time that I have had the opportunity to form a government thanks to the trust and support of the electorate. In addition, I have been able to intimately observe the work of every single government during the past quarter of a century and have gained useful moral and practical experience from their operation. It is with suitable moderation but without false modesty that the experiences of the past 24 years provides us with the opportunity to form free Hungary’s tenth government according to predetermined goals and clear expectations. My starting point was the fact that the Hungarian voters have again chosen to support unity and have chosen to give this same political direction an exceptionally strong mandate for a second time. Accordingly, Hungary’s government must lead a unified and strong nation forward along the path that it started out on four years ago. According to the public will declared on 6 April, the country must continue on in the clear and well-defined direction determined during the last term. Our goal is for the newly formed Cabinet to be a people’s party Cabinet and to practice people’s party government. This is more than simply adhering to the rules of democracy. People’s party government is based on the classic idea of Abraham Lincoln: of the people, by the people, for the people, meaning that we want to govern on the basis of the mandate provided by the people, jointly with the people and in the interests of the people.
Respected House,
This approach rejects elitism. In reply, the elite often refer to this kind of politics as populist. These are familiar dance steps. We know that during the construction of a just and competitive Hungary we need, and shall always be in need of, exceptional minds and prestigious experts. We know that we must incorporate a great deal of knowledge and experience into the system of government work. We also know that Hungary needs brave and novel ideas. However, exceptional capabilities, a high level of education and acknowledged expertise do not in themselves constitute a legal basis for sharing in administrative power, meaning they do not in themselves provide a legal basis for leading the country. We need the elite, but we don’t need an elitist government. The Cabinet must perform its duties based on the people’s mandate, in the interests of national objectives and while relying on the people. This is the essence of people’s party politics and people’s party government.
Respected House,
It follows from what I have said that the two-thirds majority reinforces the fact that the government must always and in all situations serve the three-thirds. You are all familiar with my approach according to which the winner isn’t right, they instead have a task to perform. The stronger the mandate, the greater the task and the greater the responsibility. And the greater the responsibility, the greater the humility with which we must serve the whole country.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In addition, this is the first time in many years that we can state that this government represents the whole Hungarian nation, in view of the fact that it has received a mandate not only from the people at home, but also from Hungarians living within and beyond the Carpathian Basin. We can therefore expect every member of the Cabinet, and I would ask you, Members of Parliament, to also expect the whole Cabinet to undertake this historic obligation and to stand up for the Hungarians and for the whole Hungarian nation against anybody and anything.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Hungarians have voted for the centre powers with an overwhelming majority. They have done so at both the national and the European Parliament elections. And accordingly, we can truly call today’s governing powers forces of the European centre. In the name of the centre, if required, we will take firm action to combat all kinds of extremism, whether from the right or from the left. In my view, the majority has a right to protect itself against extremism, while it also has a perpetual duty to protect minorities. And so what I ask from the members of the Cabinet is that they take action consistently and with due force in the face of all kinds of extremist and dangerous politics.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am convinced that a government that looks on passively while law-abiding citizens and those who act with a good conscience regularly come out badly, while people without conscience, the pharisaic and those who circumvent the rules come out well and gain advantages, is a weak and immoral government. The Government, with due care, sober moderation and while respecting personal dignity, must also assume a role in determining the moral quality of the general conditions prevalent within the country. All of us want to live in a Hungary in which people acknowledge each other’s work and merits, and in which, what’s more, people encourage and reassure each other. In which people’s pettiness, narrow-mindedness and prejudice is not allowed to pull back those of their fellows who perform better and undertake more. In other words we would all like a Hungary in which both the acknowledgement of work and performance and the culture of respect prevail. I ask you, the future members of the Cabinet, to be stricter with yourselves than you are with relation to others in this respect.
We have been observing the extent and rapidity of the changes that are occurring throughout the world for years now. These years are leading us into a new, historic era. It is natural that the wood can sometimes not be seen for the trees. And if anybody, then we, Members of Parliament, and especially the Cabinet, have been wading into the thick of these changes. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that these changes will occur increasingly rapidly of the course of the next four years. This will be true within the fields of science, technology and global politics. At such times there appears both a fear of change and a hope with regard to such changes. There are countries that are more afraid. On examining their competitiveness it becomes clear that they are perhaps right to be fearful. And there are countries that hope, that have great expectations in relation to the changes going on in the world. There are those, who do so with good reason. In my view, Hungary is one of these countries. I am convinced that thanks to the efforts and the performance that the people have achieved over recent years, Hungary can look forward to a new and promising era. We no longer see before us the crisis and the backs of other countries.
Respected Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The past four years were a period of great and courageous ideas. Money capitalism replaced by a work-based economy. Fragmentation replaced by citizenship and the unification of the nation. A system of liberal politics replaced by a system of national politics. Reinstating the rights of Christian culture instead of value neutrality. Liberal public morals replaced by the unconditional respect of human dignity.
Respected House,
For precisely this reason, the four years we have ahead of us will not be a period of great ideas, but a period of great deeds. The ideological construct of the future is already in place; what’s more, it is standing on firm, constitutional foundations. We will now need and have the opportunity to act and to perform courageous and large-scale deeds.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Everything I have just mentioned means that the members of the new Cabinet will have a much harder task than the members of the previous Cabinet. Because the bar has been set higher. And gruelling tasks require heavy duty people with high tensile strength. We now need Cabinet members who can withstand the weight and responsibility that the Hungarian electorate has placed on their shoulders, who approach their duties with humility, and who stand firm in the interests of our common goal.
Respected House,
I have requested Mihály Varga to continue his work and to serve the people of Hungary as the Minister of National Economy of the people’s party government. The establishing of the work-based economy and achieving full employment as a result is what we expect of him. I also ask that he prepare the Hungarian economy for the consequences of yesterday’s historic decisions of the European Central Bank. I wish the Minister much success in his work!
Tibor Navracsics will perform the duties of Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Respected House. We would like to achieve an approach which ensures that every significant foreign power has an interest in Hungary’s success. We expect him to develop a system of relations that ensures that every significant operator within global politics has an interest in Hungary’s strength, weight and influence increasing. I know full well that the development of a foreign trade and foreign policy strategy of this kind requires bravado. This is precisely why I have asked you to perform this task. I wish the Minister much success in his work!
Mr. László Trócsányi, Hungary’s former Ambassador to France, will be the head of the newly created Ministry of Justice. What we expect from him, as Minister of Justice of the people’s party government, is to protect Hungary’s constitutional identity within international space. And to contribute to the re-solidifying of the seemingly shaky public confidence in our justice system here at home. Welcome to the Cabinet, Minister Trócsányi!
Distinguished Mr. President,
I have asked Mr. Sándor Pintér to continue the work that he began in 1998 with unbroken determination as Minister of Interior of the people’s party government. What we expect from you, as the highest level guardian of public order, is to establish the security of everyday life. We ask that you be tough, inexorable and just. You must assure that the rights of criminals can never be placed before the rights of law-abiding citizens and the victims of crime. We ask that you do everything in your power to ensure that nobody has cause to be afraid in Hungary. I wish you much strength and good health in your work!
Member of Parliament Miklós Seszták will undertake to head the Ministry of National Development. As you know, this Ministry is a site of many battles and a popular target of both scrutiny and attacks. It is here that a significant part of the state’s assets are safeguarded, and it is from here that transport, energy supply and infocommunications are developed. We ask that you safeguard and multiply the nation’s assets, facilitate the reindustrialisation of the country and help the establishment of the new structure economy. We expect you to prove that the state can be a good manager and is capable of keeping Hungarian resources within the Hungarian economy. Welcome to the Cabinet!
I have asked Mr. Zoltán Balog to continue the huge task that he began during recent years as Minister of Human Resources. What we expect from you, dear Minister, is that you direct all of the opportunities and energies that converge in your Ministry to enable them to reinforce Hungary’s families. It is from you that we expect the policies with which we can stop and reverse the country’s painful demographic processes. This is the modern version of nation-saving. In all of our interests, I wish you much and rapid success!
I have asked our fellow Member, Sándor Fazekas, to continue the efforts he has made in recent years in the interests of preserving Hungarian farmland. What we expect from you, Minister Fazekas, is that you succeed in finding a way to ensure that Hungarian farmland is worked by Hungarian farmers. During the last government term, we came to a decision regarding a centuries-old Hungarian issue: who should Hungarian farmland belong to? 80% to small and medium-sized estates and 20% to large estates. We have brought this decision, and the Land Act serves to reinforce this decision, and I ask you, Minister Fazekas, to adapt the system of agricultural and rural development funding to mirror this verdict. Keep up the good work, Minister!
I have asked my fellow Member Csaba Hende to continue the work he began in 2010 as Minister of Defence. The current redistribution of global power has significant military and strategic consequences. Pressure from NATO to increase our military spending is also increasing with every day. What we expect from you, Minister Hende, is nothing less than to find the place of the Hungarian army and Hungarian defence within the international cooperation systems of the 21st century. I ask that you settle for nothing less than the successes Hungarian soldiers have achieved in recent years during the course of our duties as allies. I wish you much strength and good health for your work!
Distinguished Mr. President, Respected House,
When forming my two previous governments in 1998 and 2010, I attempted to unify the work of the Cabinet and to coordinate the activities of my ministers and their ministries using various methods, working procedures and instruments. I regarded none of these solutions as being such that they cannot and should not be modified. We are attempting to amalgamate eight years of experience in government work into the structure of the new Office of the Prime Minister. Even the most efficient and successful ministers and ministries do not automatically consolidate to form a good government and to achieve good government performance. That also requires harmony, coordination, order and courageous initiatives. This is the task that I have entrusted to our fellow MP, János Lázár. The young to battle; the old to council!
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Prime Minister’s Office is the central nervous system of the administration. To me, the frequency and strength of the attacks against the Government will be the proof of their effective work. And in fact, it is already. What would be suspicious, is if the attacks were to cease. And in addition, everyone knows that the iron and lead that flies in the direction of the Minister in charge of the Prime Minister’s Office is in fact meant for the Prime Minister. We have no reason to be surprised or to bear a grudge, because we know full well that this has become the natural order of political life in Hungary. It is a difficult, but exciting job, Minister Lázár. I am positive that on the one hand you will enjoy it, and that on the other you will perform your duties for the good of our homeland. We can be sure of this in view of the fact that you have won acknowledgement and respect as Mayor, as parliamentary group leader and as Minister of State. I wish you much success in your difficult task!
Zsolt Semjén stands here before you as Minister without portfolio and as Deputy Prime Minister. One of the keys to the success of the Fidesz – Christian Democratic People’s Party Alliance is the fact that the Christian democratic politics represented by the Christian Democratic People’s Party is the anchor that keeps the Government’s ship in waters that are secure with regard to philosophy, world view and values. Thank you for your successful national politics over the past four years and thank you for the opportunity to work with you again. I wish you good luck!
In closing, Ladies and Gentlemen, being a Minister is at once a mission, a profession and a duty. The realisation of a responsible administration depends on every member of the Cabinet understanding that to enter into the service of the Hungarian peoples represents both power and responsibility. Patriotism, humility and service – may this be the guiding principle of every member of the Cabinet. There is and there can be no other compass for us. With regard to morals, it is to these three guiding principles – patriotism, humility and service – that the members of all Hungarian Cabinets swear allegiance to. Never forget: to whom much was entrusted, of him more will be asked!
Soli Deo Gloria! Glory to God alone!