by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief reporting from Budapest, Hungary
BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Hungary’s new Prime Minister Péter Magyar has vowed to return luxury government buildings from the Orbán era to “the Hungarian people,” after revealing that he found a highlighted Bible passage in former premier Viktor Orbán’s office declaring that “the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth.”
Speaking during the swearing-in ceremony of his new government in parliament, Magyar said his administration “will serve the country and not the prime minister,” in a direct rebuke of Orbán’s 16 years in power.
The sixteen ministers of the new Tisza government took their oath Tuesday afternoon after earlier receiving their credentials from President Tamás Sulyok at Budapest’s Sándor Palace.
Magyar used his first major government speech to sharply criticize the previous administration, describing hospitals lacking disinfectant and toilet paper, moldy walls, and poor conditions in children’s homes.
He said that while ordinary Hungarians struggled, the former government spent more than one trillion forints — about $3 billion — on luxury government offices and ministries.
RETURNING ORBÁN-ERA BUILDINGS
Magyar stressed that the prime minister’s office would not move into Orbán’s former headquarters at the Karmelita complex in Budapest’s historic Buda Castle District, nor into what he called the “luxury ministry” associated with former minister Antal Rogán.
According to Magyar, these buildings would ultimately be “returned to the Hungarian people.”
“It will be a long road before these wounds heal, but today we begin this task,” Magyar told lawmakers, while also promising more transparent governance and saying his administration would be willing to admit mistakes and listen to citizens.
The remarks came a day after Magyar made an unannounced visit to Orbán’s former office in the renovated Carmelite monastery complex, commonly known as “the Karmelita.”
During the visit, Magyar accused ministers linked to Orbán’s Fidesz party of still taking on financial obligations and making important decisions without informing the incoming government.
BIBLE VERSE DISCOVERED IN OFFICE
Magyar also showed journalists and supporters a Bible in which a verse from the Book of Daniel had reportedly been underlined: “The Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.”
The passage, from Daniel 4:17, is linked to the Biblical account of Babylonian ruler Nebuchadnezzar and is widely seen by Christians and Jews as a reminder that political power ultimately remains under God’s authority.
The verse also carries a warning against pride and arrogance among rulers.
Orbán has frequently spoken about Christian and Biblical values guiding his leadership, despite accusations from critics that he concentrated too much power during his years in office — allegations he has denied.
Magyar also pointed to a paper shredder in Orbán’s former office amid opposition allegations that documents may have been destroyed during the political transition.
TRANSITION TENSIONS GROW
In a sharply worded letter Monday evening, Magyar demanded urgent written clarification from outgoing ministers regarding all decisions and financial commitments undertaken since his inauguration Saturday.
“I also call on you to undertake any further obligations only after prior approval from the Prime Minister,” Magyar wrote.
The escalating tensions come only days after Magyar urged President Sulyok — viewed by critics as an Orbán ally — to resign during a fiery inaugural speech in parliament.
Many of Magyar’s supporters have described the recent developments as symbolizing “the end of the Orbán era,” although the new prime minister has repeatedly urged Hungarians to pursue reconciliation rather than revenge.
Magyar said that while he would seek justice in corruption-related cases, he also wanted to help heal the wounds of Hungary’s recent political history.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
President Donald Trump on Monday ordered a sweeping overhaul of federal childhood vaccine recommendations, reducing the number of diseases for which vaccines are universally recommended while directing health officials to give parents greater control over when and how their children receive immunizations.
President Donald Trump scored a significant legal victory Monday in his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC after a federal judge allowed him to amend his complaint and effectively wiped out the British broadcaster’s pending attempt to have the case dismissed.
A Vietnamese court has sentenced Montagnard Protestant pastor Y Nuen Ayun to seven and a half years in prison on charges of “undermining the national unity policy,” trial observers told Worthy News on Monday.
Russian authorities say at least 13 people were killed and 39 others wounded Monday in Ukrainian drone attacks on an industrial city about 900 kilometers, or 600 miles, east of Moscow. The latest strikes signaled a further escalation of Ukraine’s campaign of air attacks deep inside Russia.
A powerful magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck western Colombia Monday, collapsing buildings, trapping residents beneath rubble, disrupting airports and sending tremors across much of the country and into neighboring Venezuela.
Archaeologists in modern-day Turkey have uncovered remains of an ancient church believed to be connected to the historic site where the First Council of Nicaea was held in A.D. 325, drawing fresh attention to one of the most consequential turning points in the history of Christianity.
President Donald Trump’s sweeping “Make D.C. Safe Again” law-enforcement campaign is approaching its first anniversary with more than 16,000 arrests, as the administration says its unprecedented federal-local partnership is changing the security landscape of the nation’s capital.