Pure Farce

We don’t have to call attention to their double standards anymore. They have provided ample proof themselves. Over the last five years, Hungary has been taken apart and subjected to shameful accusations of trampling on “European values”by the likes of the growling Tavares and other colorful characters. But in Romania, their biggest concern seems to be some corruption at animal shelters. They haven’t expressed much concern for the fact that Prime Minister Victor Ponta –from the Social Democratic Party –is facing prosecution by Romania’s anti-corruption agency (DNA) on charges of forgery, money laundering and tax fraud committed in his previous legal practice. Nor have they seemed to notice that the prime minister recently changed legislation in a way that creates obstacles to his prosecution, and to avoid the political storm that has erupted, he left for Turkey for several weeks, allegedly for medical treatment, delaying his hearing.
 
During Thursday’s committee meeting, Hungarian socialist (DK) MEP Niedermüller couldn’t even understand why a debate on the Ponta issue should take place. Afterall, in Romania, the justice system works perfectly and the prosecution is underway. European Commission Vice President Timmermans, who comes from a background in the Dutch Labor Party and regards himself as some kind of apostle of the rule of law, blatantly came to the defense of his fellow leftist, PM Ponta, saying that it would be unfair to judge Romania based only on recent events and not take into account the country’s enormous steps forward over the past 25 years.
 
Indeed, that would be so unfair! Interesting then that during the EP debates about Hungary, Comrade Tavares and his playmates never found it necessary to acknowledge that Hungary was the last one of the former communist countries to finally accept a European Fundamental Law in 2011. They never acknowledged that instead of a Greek-like agony, Hungary returned to economic growth, trimmed the deficit and ended the nine-year long Excessive Deficit Procedure against the country, nor that Hungary saved countless numbers of households from the foreign currency-denominated loan trap and involved multinational companies in sharing the country’s fiscal burdens. They never paid any attention to the fact that the government has been decreasing the national debt, lowering utility costs, reintegrating hundreds of thousands into the active labour market, and providing free meals to school children –just to name a few of the achievements of the last few years.

The Members of the European Parliament, who reduced the LIBE Committee to a left-liberal partisan playground during the show trial against Hungary, seem oblivious to the fact that this is what is turning so many voters away from the traditional, centrist parties. European citizens who look at EU institutions with confusion and suspicion see farcical performances like the antics of these members of the LIBE Committee, and they turn away to extremist parties, who further erode the system from the inside.  Perhaps Mr. Timmermans is not yet aware of that which we know very well: wherever Hungarian socialists and sister partieswalk in, failure is guaranteed.