Parliament adopts 16th amendment to Fundamental Law. Viktor Orbán cannot come back.
Parliament on Monday adopted the 16th amendment to the Fundamental Law, which limits the maximum term of the prime minister to eight years, among other provisions, reported MTI.
The amendment, initiated by Tisza Party MPs Marton Mellethei-Barna and Istvan Hantosi, was passed with 135 votes in favour, 50 against and 6 abstentions.
Under the amendment, the Fundamental Law now states that no one can be elected prime minister if they have already served a total of at least eight years in that post, including non-consecutive terms. The eight-year period is calculated from May 2, 1990, or any time thereafter.
The Fundamental Law was also amended to include a provision that the prime minister’s mandate must terminate if they have served a total of at least eight years.
It means Viktor Orbán cannot return as a Prime Minister. (Theoretically, it is possible that Fidesz could win the election with a two-thirds majority and amend the constitution in such a way that a prime ministerial term longer than eight years would once again be possible. However, there is currently virtually no chance of this happening.)
Also, the provision establishing the Sovereignty Protection Office was deleted from the Fundamental Law. The deleted provision had stated: “An independent body established by cardinal law operates to protect constitutional identity.”
The Fundamental Law was also updated to say that any state assets handed over to public interest foundations (KEKVAs) — whether as a founder, a joining member, or through any other legal arrangement — must go back to the state if the foundation is dissolved. This includes the assets themselves, any income they generate, and anything that replaces them. The state will also take over all the founder’s rights, meaning it can shut down these foundations if it chooses. On top of that, the special asset management rights tied to state-owned property will no longer apply. The nitty-gritty of how these foundations operate, how they can be dissolved, and what public tasks they handle will all be spelled out in a separate law.
The amendment to the Fundamental Law will enter into force on the day following its promulgation.
Fidesz: Fundamental Law amendment restricts rather than strengthens democracy
The opposition Fidesz parliamentary group said in a statement on Monday, noting that the amendment was adopted by the Tisza majority, while Fidesz and Christian Democrat MPs rejected it.
“The amendment contradicts the spirit of democratic competition, imposes an unprecedented restriction on the office of prime minister in Europe, and implements constitutionally dubious, ad hominem, and retroactive legislation,” the statement said.
Fidesz complained that Tisza’s amendment excluded “the leader of the largest opposition party from democratic competition through a retroactive amendment to the Fundamental Law“, calling it “unprecedented in European public life“.
