President's speech is unprecedented, says liberal leader

A state president has never spoken in support of the removal of a prime minister on election day, Liberal leader Gábor Kuncze said on television this morning.

After the ballot boxes were closed on Sunday, President László Sólyom said that only the Parliament can decide on the identity of the prime minister. He added that the "key to the solution is in the hands of the parliamentary majority."

Kuncze said that President László Sólyom's speech was "quite strange." He believes that the call to the Socialists to remove the prime minister - which Sólyom justified by citing the people's compromised faith in democracy and the moral crisis over Ferenc Gyurcsány's leaked tapes - is the result of a long process. He was referring to the promises made during the general election campaign, when he claimed opposition party Fidesz pledged four times as much as the Socialists. Kuncze added that Sólyom's appointment as state president was not a positive step for the country's political-public life.

Four years ago, the Socialist government's initial policy was very generous with resources, which Fidesz supported, he argued. Kuncze thinks this resulted in an easy victory for the Socialists at the local elections as well as an inbalance in public finances. He said that now - even if it means losing votes - the most important task is to repair the economic balance. This requires strict measures, which is why the current coalition lost the elections yesterday.

Kuncze said the current political situation can be resolved, but did not explain how. He believes "what is needed is not necessarily a personnell change" but a prime minister who supports reforms. He thinks that Ferenc Gyurcsány meets this requirement, and while the reform process will be difficult, the country has no other choice.

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