Was pausing Budapest public transport a crime?
Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony’s plan “not only penalises and blackmails the capital’s citizens, it is also unlawful, and there is a good chance it constitutes a crime,’ the parliamentary state secretary of the ministry for public administration and regional development said on social media on Friday.
Karácsony announced on Thursday that Budapest public transport will pause for 10 minutes at midday on Friday as “a warning for the government” (Karácsony said the aim is to make sure everybody understands the importance of Budapest public transport services and sees how inconvenient and how much harder life would be without them).
Csaba Latorcai said Karácsony could not stop public transport in the capital “because that would cause disturbances to public operations and instigate abuse of power”. Latorcai said the city assembly, not the mayor, had ownership over public transport company BKV, and it may constitute a crime if he paralysed its services.
“Karácsony wants to blackmail the government by forcing traffic to a halt. But what he’ll really do is upend the lives of Budapest citizens. Enough of the political games! The Karácsony-Tisza coalition should keep the interests of the capital in mind, not their own power,” he said. The capital needs responsibility and transparency to operate, he added.
Latorcai said Karácsony had been threatening to “stop [public] transport for weeks. There would be no buses, trams or metro, just so he can muddy the waters around his responsibility in [the capital’s] financial ruin and so he can hang on to his post.”
“This is not a solution; this is blackmailing Budapest citizens. They should not be the ones to pay for the failures of the city leadership. Budapest deserves more! It is time they worked for it and not against it,” he said.
Read more news about the capital’s public transport HERE.
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