Latest news with #Ruszin-Szendi
Budapest Times
08-07-2025
- Business
- Budapest Times
Ruszin-Szendi: 'We'd like a whisky barrel by the pool table'
According to the newly published report, Ruszin-Szendi's Dunakeszi service villa cost taxpayers over HUF 1 billion. The location? Personally selected by the former chief of staff for its convenience. The property itself? Outfitted with such extravagance, it rivals high-end private estates. All paid for using public money. The breakdown is as shocking as it is absurd. The villa, originally purchased for HUF 235 million, underwent upgrades worth 652.5 million more. Add another 132.2 million for furniture and appliances, and the total exceeds 1 billion. For reference, the average Hungarian would need multiple lifetimes to earn what was squandered here. Among the purchases: a custom-designed outdoor garden bed (18 million), a jacuzzi (7.6 million), an indoor sauna (6.7 million), a grill oven (6.5 million), and a pool table (4 million). Inside the house, Ruszin-Szendi demanded French beds worth 2 million each, a 720,000 forint coffee machine, and even a 360,000 forint wine cooler. One email from Ruszin-Szendi to his procurement team reveals the mindset clearly: 'We'd like a whisky barrel as décor by the pool table and a smaller one in the office as a service table.' This wasn't a case of outfitting a professional residence — it was an indulgent wishlist for personal comfort. Ruszin-Szendi and his wife asked for ceiling mirrors, makeup tables, PlayStations, designer bathrobes, and even premium mattresses. The villa's terrace was fitted with sun loungers and a full outdoor kitchen. They didn't forget storage for their pillows and robes either. Yet, this palace served them for a mere five months in 2023 before they moved out. The state never recouped a forint — no new tenant has been found, and the villa now sits empty while taxpayers continue to fund its maintenance, costing an additional 10.3 million so far. This is not just about waste. It's about impunity. It's about a culture where public funds are treated as private wallets. Where 'service accommodation' becomes code for luxury living. And where the people footing the bill are never those enjoying the spoils. Hungarians deserve better. They deserve accountability. Ruszin-Szendi's villa is not just a scandal — it's a warning.
Budapest Times
01-07-2025
- Health
- Budapest Times
KEHI report unveils former Chief of Staff's secret liposuction
According to the official KEHI report, the operation was performed on April 14, 2022, for aesthetic — not medical — reasons. The procedure was carried out by medical staff who were direct subordinates of Ruszin-Szendi, in a hospital that was under his command at the time. The cost of such a procedure in private healthcare typically ranges from HUF 600,000 to HUF 1.2 million. In this case, Ruszin-Szendi made no payment. The full cost was covered using the Honvéd Hospital's internal budget, which is funded by taxpayers. The report also found that deliberate efforts were made to conceal the procedure. It was not recorded under Ruszin-Szendi's name in the hospital's system. Instead, a fictitious social security number was used, and the related data was masked to avoid identification, obstructing transparency and accountability. This represents a clear misuse of public resources. KEHI concluded that the procedure was unauthorized, improperly documented, and in violation of regulations governing public healthcare services. The agency recommended that the Minister of Health initiate steps to recover the full cost of the surgery. Additionally, KEHI reviewed state-funded renovations at Ruszin-Szendi's service property in Dunakeszi, which also raised concerns. These findings form part of a broader inquiry into irregularities during his tenure. The report speaks for itself. The opposition's new darling exploited his position to access taxpayer-funded healthcare for personal gain — and tried to cover it up. KEHI found these actions not only irregular, but unlawful under current regulations.
Budapest Times
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Budapest Times
Kocsis: Tisza Party has Ukrainian connections that may violate Hungary's sovereignty
Máté Kocsis, ruling Fidesz's parliamentary group leader, told public radio on Sunday that the opposition Tisza Party has Ukrainian connections that may violate Hungary's sovereignty. Referring to a report leaked on Thursday, Kocsis said that Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, Tisza's defense expert who was formerly Hungary's chief of staff, had said 'totally different things' at NATO meetings than what he had written in his reports back home. Kocsis said the protocols of the general assembly meetings indicated Ruszin-Szendi had represented a 'pro-Ukraine' stance and had ended his addresses with the salute 'Slava Ukraini!'. Kocsis said that by doing this, Ruszin-Szendi was not representing his mandate and had gone against the official Hungarian position on ending the war and stopping weapons deliveries to Ukraine. He also said that after the release of the report on Ruszin-Szendi, Tisza Party leader Peter Magyar had 'used the entire left-liberal press to attack the Hungarian Armed Forces' by releasing an audio recording which the defense minister himself had published and which can also be found on the government's website. Not long after Magyar's 'incoherent accusations', Kocsis said, the Ukrainians 'accused, without any evidence' two Transcarpathian Hungarians of espionage aimed at obtaining intelligence about Ukrainian defenses in Transcarpathia. 'Though these are serious accusations, but since there's no evidence for them, it's clearly a part of the propaganda war that's been going on these last few years,' the group leader said. 'There's a pro-Ukraine former lieutenant general … there is a suspicion that he has a link to the Ukrainians, meaning he may have connections with the Ukrainian secret services, which in his case would warrant an investigation of its own,' Kocsis said. He said the 'obvious conclusion' to this was the suspicion that 'this connection was Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi himself'. 'Our political opponent, the Tisza Party, has Ukrainian connections that may, let's just say, violate the country's sovereignty,' Kocsis said. He noted that Hungarians will have to make an important decision in the coming weeks in the referendum on Ukraine's fast-tracked accession to the European Union. In response to a question, Kocsis said he did not think the 'Ukraine issue' would bring in more votes for fast-tracking Ukraine's accession,'even though this is what the opposition is hoping for'. 'I don't think that's the goal; I think the goal is to cause confusion,' the group leader said, adding that this was 'a typical secret-service operation that the Ukrainians are using as propaganda'. He said the goal was to — at the very least — create confusion in Hungary around the perception of issues relating to Ukraine. 'Our position, on the other hand, is that Hungarians shouldn't be told what to think from the Ukrainian secret service HQ or from Tisza's office in Brussels, because they themselves are the only ones who can decide on Ukraine's EU accession,' Kocsis said. He said Ukraine had been restricting the rights of its Hungarian minority community for years. He added that he did not think anything could be done in defense of the two Hungarians arrested in Ukraine, mainly because the evidence and allegations against them were not yet known. Kocsis said that sometimes these kinds of operations were not made public and did not involve any communication, but if there is, their identity and the evidence against them have to be revealed. 'But this hasn't happened, which also makes the case suspicious regarding the Tisza Party's timing,' he added.
Budapest Times
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Budapest Times
Defense Minister: Chief of Staffs remain loyal to Hungarian government at all times
Defense Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky said chiefs of staff of the Hungarian military 'have a corporate ethos to avoid party politics and to be loyal to the Hungarian government at all times.' Asked about a Monday statement by former commanders and chiefs of staff, Minister Szalay-Bobrovniczky said the contribution to political events by former army officials could divide the military, and he expressed disapproval of such activities. The minister said that a former chief of staff who entered the political arena could compromise unity within the military and 'create uncertainty', which he said was 'extremely dangerous in war times'. Minister Szalay-Bobrovniczky noted that he had worked together with Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, a former chief of staff, who recently addressed a rally organised by the opposition Tisza Party. The minister said he had previously initiated Ruszin-Szendi's dismissal 'after a short period of co-working' because he thought the chief of staff 'could not take the military to a higher level of combat capabilities as required in the interest of the Hungarian people.' The minister said Ruszin-Szendi had 'chosen the wrong role' and 'he keeps on talking'. He also suggested that Ruszin-Szendi, when still in office, had engaged in talks with Ukraine's defense minister and other Ukrainian officials without appropriate authorisation. 'A high-level military leader has huge powers and … could create situations in which politicians are forced to react,' Minister Szalay-Bobrovniczky said, adding that 'anyone acting like that is obviously unfit for their position.'
