Hungary's opposition to start referendum drive on Friday

Fidesz will launch its referendum drive on Friday afternoon, the campaign's political leader István Tarlós announced Wednesday, in contradiction of party leader Viktor Orbán's Tuesday proclamation that the required signatures would be collected within 48 hours of publication of the relevant Constitutional Court ruling in the official gazette, Magyar Közlöny. The ruling endorsing the referendum initiative on fees for visits to doctors and hospitals and for post-secondary tuition was published on Wednesday.

The "punctuality of the 48 hours is beside the point," Tarlós said, adding that he would be sorry if this "game" were to be about that.

Orbán may announce at the party rally on October 23 that the necessary 200,000 signatures have been collected, Népszabadság observes. Tarlós stated that Fidesz wants to submit the collected signatures to the National Election Office next Wednesday, the first working day after the holidays.

He said activists will be at stands on the streets and will also go from door to door to collect signatures during the upcoming holiday weekend. Party activists are said to be ready in all the constituencies of Hungary, according to Magyar Hírlap. and Fidesz hopes to collect one million signatures.

Once the signature sheets are handed in to the National Election Office, it has 45 days to verify them before reporting to the National Election Commission, which will then inform Parliament. The House will have 15 days to order a referendum. President László Sólyom can then set the date for the vote.

The above story is just one of more than two dozen published today by Hungary Around the Clock, the most comprehensive source of daily English-language news about Hungary. For a free trial of HATC, click here. Hungarian news sources include Népszabadság; Magyar Hírlap; Világgazdaság; Napi Gazdaság; Magyar Nemzet; Népszava; Kossuth Rádió news and Hungarian television's nightly news broadcast.

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