A political storm has erupted in Hungary after independent MP Ákos Hadházy published photographs of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s unfinished Hatvanpuszta estate, featuring a palm garden and a private zoo. The revelations, reported by Hungarian media including HVG, have fuelled comparisons to the opulent residence of former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych.
Photos spark public curiosity
Hadházy released images of the sprawling property, which government minister Gergely Gulyás described as a “manor” and Orban insists is his father’s still-unfinished farm. Earlier photographs, reportedly taken by a worker who quit the project in disgust, show elaborate infrastructure such as heated pathways designed to prevent snow accumulation. The complex also includes an underground brick-lined corridor linking buildings.
Over the weekend, Hadházy organised a public tour to glimpse the heavily fenced site. Thousands queued, some walking for kilometres, to see for themselves whether the estate was indeed a family farm or a baroque-style mansion with a library, chapel, fountains, solar plant, underground garage, ornamental lake and an exotic animal park. Zebra sightings, along with antelopes and buffaloes, underscored the extraordinary nature of the property.
Opposition vows investigation
Hungarian journalists noted that the atmosphere of the public visit resembled that of 2014, when protesters first entered Yanukovych’s residence. Some visitors joked about the “zebra park,” while reports indicated that even makeshift earthworks, police patrols and mobile fences could not keep exotic animals away from public view.
Opposition leader Péter Magyar, head of the Tisza party and a leading challenger to Orban in upcoming elections, has pledged that, if elected, the State Audit Office will investigate two decades of asset accumulation by current and former government officials and their relatives. He specifically named the Hatvanpuszta estate as a target for scrutiny, promising that the National Asset Recovery Office would obtain records from heritage authorities, permit agencies and construction workers involved in the project.
Wider political backdrop
The scandal comes amid months of public protests against Orban’s policies, including a law banning LGBT pride events and constitutional amendments restricting LGBT rights. All opposition parties voted against the amendments, which triggered large demonstrations in Budapest. Another pending bill, the “On Transparency of Public Life” act, would allow the Sovereignty Protection Office to blacklist organisations receiving foreign funding — including EU grants — if deemed a threat to national sovereignty.
