Hungarian President Katalin Novák resigned on Saturday evening over the pedophilia scandal. Novák pardoned a man convicted of complicity in the sexual abuse of minors. On Saturday, Hungarian state television showed a video of her dismissal. Recently, pressure from the government and the opposition has been increasing on the 46-year-old.
“I made a mistake. The amnesty decision and the lack of justification would probably raise doubts,” Novák explains. As a Hungarian citizen, she expects a head of state not to make mistakes. And if he does, he must take responsibility , even with the decision to resign.
“I ask for forgiveness from those I offended and also from the victims who may have felt that I was not by their side,” Novák said. At the same time, former Justice Minister Judit Varga also announced that she would withdraw from public life. As a minister, Varga had co-signed the controversial amnesty decision. With his withdrawal, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s right-wing conservative Fidesz needs a new top candidate for the European elections in June.
Preventing impeachment proceedings
Novák, who was only elected by the Hungarian parliament for a five-year term in the spring of 2022, could have avoided impeachment proceedings with her resignation. The ruling party Fidesz has the necessary two-thirds majority in parliament, although the final decision on dismissal lies with the Constitutional Court. As a result of Novák’s withdrawal, Parliament Speaker László Köver will take over the official duties of the head of state on an interim basis.
Amnesty on the occasion of the Pope’s visit
President Novák had already granted the amnesty in April 2023 and linked it to the Pope’s visit to Hungary. At the time, a broadcast from the Sándor Palace said: The Pope’s visit was a special opportunity for the head of state to exercise his right to amnesty. The special case of the deputy head of the children’s home had only now become known. An “observant citizen” informed the news portal 444.hu.
Source: Krone
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