We were the first one to report on the Prime Minister’s trip to a Videoton-Ludogorec Champion’s League game in Bulgaria on July 25. The trip was made on a 60 million dollar business jet, and Orbán’s Press Secretary, Bertalan Havasi asserted that it has not been paid from public funds. In September, however, watchdog organization and online newspaper Átlátszó had published pictures of Orbán deboarding the luxurious jet, which is used daily by Hungary’s richest oligarchs. As a reaction to the article, Havasi has said the following: "Viktor Orbán attends all games of MOL-VIDI FC. On these occasions, he is the guest of the football club’s owner [István Garancsi], and travels in the same way as all other guests of the club. This has always been the case and it will continue to be so. All of this does not cost a single forint for Hungarian tax payers."

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán talking to István Garancsi (photo: Viktor Veres / ZOOM)
It will continue to be so, meaning that Orbán will continue to accept millions worth of favors from István Garancsi, who has won billions through public tenders, partly due to his friendship with Orbán. Apart from the football club, Garancsi owns several companies including an advertisement company and a construction company, and has been named the 19th richest person in Hungary. While there are several cases in which his companies appear to have been violating the law, criminal investigation against them is either extremely slow, or is non-existent. What’s more, the government has made several decisions in the past which benefiting Garancsi immensely. His football club, Videoton gets a new stadium from public money, and has received billions of forints from corporate taxes. His company, Market, was the one to build the Duna Arena (central venue of FINA 2017 Budapest), amidst lax legal regulations. He has made a fortune on online cash registers, was part of the MET-deal and the controversies around the Jeremie EU subsidy scheme, and received ownership and free use of billboards through the modifications of relevant regulations. It’s clear that Orbán, as Prime Minister, had a direct effect on these decisions, and, as a member of the Parliament, he also had the chance to vote for bills that gave preferential treatment to Garancsi. It’s safe to say that Orbán’s relationship with Garancsi has considerable influence on his work as a politician, and citizens are ought to know about the details.