The Integrity Authority (IH) was created two years ago in Hungary to monitor the use of public funds. Today she finds herself in the crosshairs of justice. On Thursday, January 16, employees of the Attorney General’s Office carried out several searches, including one at the home of its president, Ferenc Biró. The courts accuse him of using two company vehicles for private purposes by himself and his wife, for damages estimated at 14 million forints, or €34,000.
The affair is embarrassing for someone who was recruited on the basis of integrity. But in this Central European country, considered by the NGO Transparency International as the most corrupt in the European Union, these major means deployed for an ultimately modest sum raise questions. “ My wife used my company car for things as serious as going to the store », Protested Ferenc Biró on Friday during a press conference. He filed a complaint against what he considers “ unfounded allegations » and believes that “ it is about attacking the Authority of Integrity through me ».
A concession to unlock European funds
The creation of this Authority is a concession from the Hungarian government to the European Commission, in exchange for the release of part of the European funds frozen, due to a risk ” systemic » of corruption. It replaces Hungary’s membership of the European anti-corruption prosecutor’s office, categorically rejected by the sovereignists in power in Budapest.
This measure, however, was not unanimous in Hungary: “ The Integrity Authority serves as a cover-up », Judge Szabolcs Panyi, the most prominent investigative journalist in the country. He considers that being “ at the mercy of the parliamentary majority, the government, Antal Rogán and the Hungarian secret services, (…) it cannot be less corrupt than the rest of the state “. Indeed, if the Authority controls an increasing volume of Community funds, “ it does not have the powers to carry out its anti-corruption missions », as denounced by EPP MEP, Isabel Wiseler-Lima, in the European Parliament in April 2024.
So, with these prosecutions, is it a question of removing an official who was too zealous? During his press conference, Ferenc Biró limited himself to noting that justice fell on him a week after his Authority opened an investigation against the National Communications Office. He suspects him of favoring an advertising agency paid at great expense. And this agency is headed by Antal Rogán, the all-powerful minister in the Prime Minister’s office, who also oversees the secret services.
The “minister of propaganda”
Centerpiece of the regime, Antal Rogán, nicknamed by his detractors as the “Minister of Propaganda,” was placed under sanction on Tuesday by the United States Treasury Department. He is ” one of the main architects, executors and beneficiaries of (…) the kleptocratic ecosystem » which is currently raging in Hungary, justified the American ambassador David Pressman, who has become the government’s bête noire.
Questioned Friday morning on public radio, Viktor Orbán replied that Antal Rogán is the “ number one guardian of Hungarian sovereignty. So if a great power punishes him, it means he is doing his job well “. When he took office as president of the Integrity Authority two years ago, Ferenc Biró considered that “ it’s not the system that is corrupt, it’s the individuals “. Maybe he thinks differently now.