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Zsolt Molnar said that Czegledy is one of his political allies but he has no knowledge about his companies. The Socialist Party said that they do not investigate their members or monitor the private activities of their politicians.<\/p>\n
Together with government-linked businessmen<\/strong><\/h2>\nAfter the 2010 landslide victory of Fidesz, it seemed that there would be no bright future for those on the left. Nevertheless, for Czegledy this looked like the right moment to start his business career. In June 2010, he bought a hairdressing and beauty company which he renamed Perfektum Project Ltd. and changed its profile to consultancy. A few years later, three new companies were formed on the basis of Perfektum Project, and this is how a four-member business group was established. During the past years, the group successfully won public tenders and has produced a spectacular growth.<\/p>\n
The business group won public tenders in individual bids in the amount of 2.8 million euros. In addition, the companies of Czegledy applied for state and municipal projects also in cooperation with other firms, and these business consortia won tenders in the amount of 12 million euros. On top of these, Czegledy and his partners were also selected for several high-value framework contracts, under which they can get hired by state agencies to do additional tasks.<\/p>\n
Czegledy\u2019s group improved its performance year by year: while in 2011 it won only one tender, in 2012 it was already six, and by 2017 this number totalled to 29 (thanks to other companies of Perfektum, which also started to win tenders). Even though they were not always successful, they managed to win in almost one-third of the 300 tenders they applied for between November 2011 and June 2018.\u00a0Czegledy claims, however, that they have had legal disputes with some of the state agencies and therefore they have not received full payment even from some of the tenders that they had won.<\/p>\n
Czegledy\u2019s most frequent consortium partners included companies in partial ownership of Tamas Varnai, a businessman with ties to the governing party. During Viktor Orban\u2019s first government (between 1998 and 2002) Varnai was the managing director of Ezusthajo, a company that won several lucrative state contracts at the time. Now he is on the board of TV2, the flagship television station of the government-linked propaganda machine, owned by a businessman with close ties to Viktor Orban. An acquaintance of Varnai described him as a person with relations to the most important figures of the government-linked business circles, such as Arpad Habony, the main adviser of Orban, and Lorinc Meszaros, the childhood friend of the PM.<\/p>\n
Out of hundred successful tenders, the Perfektum-group cooperated in 21 cases with companies of Varnai. They provided communications services for environmental development projects and organized events for state agencies.<\/p>\n
Czegledy\u2019s companies also partnered with a firm called Metrober Ltd. and won together three times on the tenders of the national road and rail construction investment company in the amount of 1.9 million euros. Their last joint tender victory was in August 2017, and a month later, Metrober was taken over by Attila Boros, one of the beneficiaries of the Hungarian golden visa program. According to data from the company registry, Boros had agreed to the purchase of Metrober before the company partnered with Czegledy.<\/p>\n
Czegledy\u2019s most valuable tender concerned the construction of the Budapest museum quarter. The state company implementing this project selected Perfektum and two other companies in 2015, for the tender worth 11 million euros. Responding to our questions, Czegledy said that his companies have not yet received any income from this project.<\/p>\n
Local municipalities also cooperated with Czegledy\u2019s companies in various development projects. One of them was a project of a local governmental office in which Czegledy cooperated with Lorinc Meszaros\u2019 company.<\/p>\n
The Perfektum business group has produced visible growth since its formation. While in 2011 its revenues totalled only 21 500 euros, they reached 2.3 million euros in 2015 and have remained at the same levels since then. Since 2013, Czegledy has received 2.3 million euros in dividends from his companies, records show. He claims, however, that they put this figure in their annual reports for bookkeeping purposes and the actual amount he took out of his businesses was lower.<\/p>\n
He outlived Hagyo<\/strong><\/h2>\nDuring his political career, Gergo Czegledy has cooperated with Zsolt Molnar, an influential member of the Socialist Party.<\/p>\n
According to Molnar, they have known each other for about ten years, since the time when both of them attended a political school in Budapest.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/direkt36.exot.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Molnar02.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Zsolt Molnar, an influential member of the Socialist Party, source: mszp.hu<\/em><\/p>\nIn 2006, Czegledy became a member of the inner circles of Miklos Hagyo, the influential deputy mayor of Budapest from the Socialist Party. Hagyo fell from power because of a string of corruption scandals a few years later, but Czegledy survived this largely unscathed. From 2008, Czegledy has managed to build a decent political career in Obuda, one of the biggest Budapest districts. At the same time, he also tightened his relationship with Molnar and joined his group of people supporting Csaba Horvath, a Socialist politician who was considering running for the mayor\u2019s position.<\/p>\n
Czegledy is currently leading the local Socialist branch in Obuda. He is also the chairman of an important local municipal body, the financial committee. The district is led by Fidesz, whose main opponent, on paper, are the Socialists, but there were cases when Czegledy avoided conflicts with Fidesz. This caused tension among left-wing parties in the district.<\/p>\n
During the 2014 election campaign, the district\u2019s left-wing parties learnt that the son of Fidesz MP candidate Erzsebet Menczer had been granted the rental of an apartment from the local municipality. Even though a Socialist politician was running against Menczer in the district, the Socialist Party was less critical than its smaller, left-wing political partner Egyutt (Together) Party, which filed an official complaint in the case. This step was not welcomed by Zsolt Molnar, who at that time led the Socialist Party\u2019s national campaign and maintained a friendly relationship with Menczer. Molnar reprimanded one politician of Egyutt over the phone and said that \u201cthis was not the right move, we do not file complaints against each other.\u201d Molnar even asked \u201cnot to do this anymore\u201d in the future, according to a former member of the now-defunct Egyutt Party, who had knowledge about the phone conversation.<\/p>\n
Responding to our question, Molnar said that the party looked into the matter but concluded that no crime had been committed. Afterwards, he asked Egyutt not to file a complaint. \u201cIt turned out that we were right,\u201d Molnar said, referring to the fact that in the end the Prosecutor\u2019s Office did not launch an investigation in the case. However, in Molnar\u2019s opinion, the Socialist Party considered the apartment rental case a problem from a \u201cpolitical and ethical perspective.\u201d<\/p>\n
It would be stupid to starve<\/strong><\/h2>\nCzegledy still maintains a close relationship with Zsolt Molnar. According to a source who played an active role in the 2018 election campaign, Molnar \u201chas his people in every district,\u201d and he is on good terms with Czegledy. Czegledy\u2019s district is important to Molnar, as the left still has a relatively high public support in that district, the source added. Responding to our questions, Molnar said that Czegledy is indeed his \u201cstrong political ally,\u201d however, he also keeps similarly good relations with about a dozen other Socialist politicians. Czegledy added that they are in a \u201ccomradely relation,\u201d and both of them \u201cfight to defeat Fidesz\u201d.<\/p>\n
At the end of May, Molnar was re-elected as the head of the Budapest branch of the party. In this position, he has influence over various local municipal companies, where his Socialist allies currently hold several positions. For example, Gergo Czegledy is a board member of the Budapest public utilities service provider.<\/p>\n
Thanks to all this, Molnar is one of the most influential persons of the party according to several Socialist politicians and people with in-depth knowledge about the inner workings of the party. \u201cHe is in charge of the last resources,\u201d one of them said, referring to the fact that Budapest is the only remaining political and economic bastion of the once dominant party, which has been struggling financially for years.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, Molnar has become a frequent target of criticism for maintaining good relations with Fidesz. His critics say that he is only interested in keeping the current political status quo. During the campaign for the parliamentary elections for years ago, the allies of the Socialist Party criticized Molnar for being too soft on some Fidesz politicians.<\/p>\n
Before stepping down as the Socialist prime ministerial candidate in the autumn of 2017, Laszlo Botka even accused him of collaboration with Fidesz, but without presenting any proof. Molnar rejected these accusations. A leading Fidesz politician denied to Direkt36 that Molnar would be dismantling the Socialist Party from the inside on behalf of Fidesz. The source added, however, that Molnar is indeed paying attention to \u201chaving orderly relations with Fidesz.\u201d Other Fidesz representatives described Molnar and similar opposition figures with ties to Fidesz as people who \u2013 in the midst of political battles \u2013 do not forget to represent their own interests. \u201cThey think it would be stupid to starve during the fight,\u201d one Fidesz source said.<\/p>\n
During his political career, Gergo Czegledy has cooperated with Zsolt Molnar, an influential member of the Socialist Party.<\/p>\n
According to Molnar, they have known each other for about ten years, since the time when both of them attended a political school in Budapest.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Zsolt Molnar, an influential member of the Socialist Party, source: mszp.hu<\/em><\/p>\n In 2006, Czegledy became a member of the inner circles of Miklos Hagyo, the influential deputy mayor of Budapest from the Socialist Party. Hagyo fell from power because of a string of corruption scandals a few years later, but Czegledy survived this largely unscathed. From 2008, Czegledy has managed to build a decent political career in Obuda, one of the biggest Budapest districts. At the same time, he also tightened his relationship with Molnar and joined his group of people supporting Csaba Horvath, a Socialist politician who was considering running for the mayor\u2019s position.<\/p>\n Czegledy is currently leading the local Socialist branch in Obuda. He is also the chairman of an important local municipal body, the financial committee. The district is led by Fidesz, whose main opponent, on paper, are the Socialists, but there were cases when Czegledy avoided conflicts with Fidesz. This caused tension among left-wing parties in the district.<\/p>\n During the 2014 election campaign, the district\u2019s left-wing parties learnt that the son of Fidesz MP candidate Erzsebet Menczer had been granted the rental of an apartment from the local municipality. Even though a Socialist politician was running against Menczer in the district, the Socialist Party was less critical than its smaller, left-wing political partner Egyutt (Together) Party, which filed an official complaint in the case. This step was not welcomed by Zsolt Molnar, who at that time led the Socialist Party\u2019s national campaign and maintained a friendly relationship with Menczer. Molnar reprimanded one politician of Egyutt over the phone and said that \u201cthis was not the right move, we do not file complaints against each other.\u201d Molnar even asked \u201cnot to do this anymore\u201d in the future, according to a former member of the now-defunct Egyutt Party, who had knowledge about the phone conversation.<\/p>\n Responding to our question, Molnar said that the party looked into the matter but concluded that no crime had been committed. Afterwards, he asked Egyutt not to file a complaint. \u201cIt turned out that we were right,\u201d Molnar said, referring to the fact that in the end the Prosecutor\u2019s Office did not launch an investigation in the case. However, in Molnar\u2019s opinion, the Socialist Party considered the apartment rental case a problem from a \u201cpolitical and ethical perspective.\u201d<\/p>\n Czegledy still maintains a close relationship with Zsolt Molnar. According to a source who played an active role in the 2018 election campaign, Molnar \u201chas his people in every district,\u201d and he is on good terms with Czegledy. Czegledy\u2019s district is important to Molnar, as the left still has a relatively high public support in that district, the source added. Responding to our questions, Molnar said that Czegledy is indeed his \u201cstrong political ally,\u201d however, he also keeps similarly good relations with about a dozen other Socialist politicians. Czegledy added that they are in a \u201ccomradely relation,\u201d and both of them \u201cfight to defeat Fidesz\u201d.<\/p>\n At the end of May, Molnar was re-elected as the head of the Budapest branch of the party. In this position, he has influence over various local municipal companies, where his Socialist allies currently hold several positions. For example, Gergo Czegledy is a board member of the Budapest public utilities service provider.<\/p>\n Thanks to all this, Molnar is one of the most influential persons of the party according to several Socialist politicians and people with in-depth knowledge about the inner workings of the party. \u201cHe is in charge of the last resources,\u201d one of them said, referring to the fact that Budapest is the only remaining political and economic bastion of the once dominant party, which has been struggling financially for years.<\/p>\n In the meantime, Molnar has become a frequent target of criticism for maintaining good relations with Fidesz. His critics say that he is only interested in keeping the current political status quo. During the campaign for the parliamentary elections for years ago, the allies of the Socialist Party criticized Molnar for being too soft on some Fidesz politicians.<\/p>\n Before stepping down as the Socialist prime ministerial candidate in the autumn of 2017, Laszlo Botka even accused him of collaboration with Fidesz, but without presenting any proof. Molnar rejected these accusations. A leading Fidesz politician denied to Direkt36 that Molnar would be dismantling the Socialist Party from the inside on behalf of Fidesz. The source added, however, that Molnar is indeed paying attention to \u201chaving orderly relations with Fidesz.\u201d Other Fidesz representatives described Molnar and similar opposition figures with ties to Fidesz as people who \u2013 in the midst of political battles \u2013 do not forget to represent their own interests. \u201cThey think it would be stupid to starve during the fight,\u201d one Fidesz source said.<\/p>\nIt would be stupid to starve<\/strong><\/h2>\n