BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) 鈥 A former Hungarian government insider turned critic released an audio recording on Tuesday that he says proves that top officials conspired to cover up corruption, the latest development in a scandal that has shaken Prime Minister Viktor Orb谩n's domination of the country's politics.
The country's largest protests in years erupted in early February when it was revealed that the president had issued a pardon to a man imprisoned for covering up child sexual abuses by the director of a state-run orphanage.
Close Orb谩n allies, including the president and Justice Minister Judit Varga, were in the face of public outrage.
The latest allegations come from Varga's ex-husband, Peter Magyar, a former political insider who says he has turned whistleblower to reveal the extent of impropriety within Orb谩n's government.
He posted a recording on Facebook and YouTube on Tuesday featuring what appeared to be Varga's voice describing how other government officials caused evidence to be removed from court records to cover up their roles in corrupt business dealings.
鈥淭hey suggested to the prosecutors what should be removed," Varga says in the recording, which Magyar says he made during a conversation in the former couple鈥檚 apartment. Varga also says that one of her state secretaries was tipped off by senior officials that he was the subject of a corruption investigation.
Magyar gave the recording to the Metropolitan Public Prosecutor's Office in Budapest on Tuesday to be used as evidence.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Varga accused Magyar of domestic violence during their marriage and claimed she had made the statements under duress, but didn't deny that it was her in the recording.
鈥淚 said what he wanted to hear so I could get away as soon as possible. In a situation like this, any person can say things they don鈥檛 mean in a state of intimidation,鈥 Varga wrote. Magyar later denied those claims in a separate post on Facebook.
Once a senior but little-known member of Orb谩n鈥檚 political circle, Magyar shot to prominence when he gave an interview in February to popular YouTube channel Partizan in which he accused Orb谩n's government of widespread corruption and of using smear campaigns to discredit its opponents.
On March 15, he in Budapest and announced plans to form a new political party to challenge the governing party's 14-year grip on power as an alternative to Hungary鈥檚 fragmented opposition.
The scandal caused an unprecedented political crisis within Orb谩n鈥檚 government, which has led Hungary since 2010. Magyar鈥檚 followers hope his position as a former insider can help to disrupt Hungary鈥檚 political system, which many see as a deeply entrenched autocracy.
In his recent public appearances, Magyar has particularly targeted Antal Rogan, a close Orb谩n ally who is responsible for the government鈥檚 communications as well as the country鈥檚 secret services. The recording released Tuesday purports to show that Rogan led the effort to alter evidence.
The government has dismissed Magyar as an opportunist seeking to forge a new career after his divorce with Varga and his loss of positions in several state companies. But his rise has compounded political headaches for Orb谩n that have included the resignation of members of his government and a painful economic crisis.
After spending nearly four hours inside the prosecutor's office on Tuesday, Magyar told journalists that the alleged evidence tampering was cause for Orb谩n's government to step down, and called for a spontaneous protest later in the day.
On Tuesday evening, thousands of demonstrators gathered at Magyar's urging at the Public Prosecutor's Office in Budapest where he demanded the resignation of the attorney general, whom he accused of acting in the interests of Orb谩n's governing party.
鈥淟et us send a message from here, together, that we will not let them cover up the biggest legal and political scandal of the last 30 years! We will not allow it!鈥 he said, adding that he demanded that the alleged misconduct 鈥渂e investigated independently, objectively and free from political interference.鈥
One demonstrator, Katalin Varga, said that she identifies with Magyar's political message that corruption in Hungary has led to a disintegration of the country's political, cultural and social life.
鈥淔inally, there is a force, a character who represents what for me is the problem with the current situation: the political system, the abuses, and the fact that we are slowly cooking like frogs and not realizing that we are going to be the soup,鈥 she said.
