The Hungarian parliament has passed a constitutional amendment aimed at removing President Tamas Sulyok from office, as the country's new leadership seeks to break with the legacy of former Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

The amendment was pushed through by Prime Minister Peter Magyar's pro-European Tisza party, which holds a two-thirds majority in parliament. Magyar has vowed to dismantle the system established during Orban's 16-year rule, and removing Sulyok was a key campaign promise.

Magyar argued that Sulyok failed to fulfill his duties by not intervening against Orban's alleged anti-democratic measures. "The president did not act as a guardian of the constitution," Magyar said ahead of the vote. The amendment's stated purpose is "restoring rule-of-law democracy."

Orban's Fidesz party denounced the move as an "unprecedented" assault on democratic order. Fidesz lawmakers boycotted the vote, which passed with 139 in favor and 6 against. Orban himself was absent, reportedly traveling to the US to watch the World Cup.

President Sulyok now has five days to sign the amendment into law. If he refuses, Tisza has threatened to launch impeachment proceedings. The presidency in Hungary is largely ceremonial, but the president does have the power to sign legislation and refer laws to the Constitutional Court for review.

Magyar described the vote as a "significant day in the history of modern Hungary and the transition to democracy." Critics, however, view the move as a politically motivated power grab that could further destabilize the country's political landscape.

Source: www.dw.com