Army makes overpriced purchases, Mi Hazánk says

The government has now also had to admit to the successful hacker attack against the Hungarian Army’s (MH) central procurement agency VBÜ. Mi Hazánk wants clarification as to who is responsible for this mishap. Member of Parliament Előd Novák is demanding explanations from Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky, ‘who rose to become a billionaire through his casino concessions’, about the ‘seemingly absurd’ procurement costs of the MH. According to experts, the leaked prices are said to be 2-10 times higher than the usual standard. As a glaring example, protective waistcoats cost the army the equivalent of 1,500 euros each.

The responsible parliamentary committee has been bluntly exempting procurements from the obligation of public tendering for years, continues the Mi Hazánk politician. Billions are being spent on imports that could be replaced by domestic defence companies at a fraction of the cost and with domestic added value. In one specific case, Novák called for an investigation into suspected corruption, which the government majority rejected.