BUDAPEST — Hungary's opposition leader Peter Magyar vowed at an election rally on Sunday to end corruption, rebuild the economy and restore the freedoms his party accuses nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban of curtailing.

Ahead of a parliamentary election on April 12, Magyar has emerged as the biggest threat to Orban since he returned to power in 2010. His Tisza Party has been running ahead of Orban's Fidesz in opinion polls for many months.

 

"Not only has the Hungarian economy not taken off, but it has hit a dead end," Magyar told a rally in Budapest, a day after the prime minister used his state of the nation speech to vow a continuation of his tough policies.

 

Magyar has accused Orban and his allies of getting rich from their time in power.

 

"It is time to call corruption by its name: theft," Magyar told hundreds of supporters at the rally, accusing the prime minister's supporters of diverting billions of dollars.

 

He said his party would guarantee "total transparency in contracts involving public funds" and "recover" all the money Hungary "has been deprived of over 16 years".

 

Magyar also accused Orban of spying on opponents and promised to bolster civil liberties.

"If they can search through my private life, then they can rummage through everyone's," said Magyar, who said he would propose "a country where everyone can live in peace".

 

Opposition and rights groups regularly accuse Orban of silencing critical voices in the judiciary, academia and media, as well as cutting the rights of minority groups.

 

Orban on Saturday vowed to press on with a crackdown on "pseudo-civil organisations, bought journalists, judges, politicians", saying his work was only "half done" as he called for votes.

Magyar challenged Orban to a public debate before the election.

 

The Tisza party leader has accused Orban of being a "puppet" of foreign powers and his rally came as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Budapest for a meeting on Monday with Orban.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly praised Orban, saying in a social media post on Friday that he had produced "phenomenal" results in Hungary. Orban has also maintained close ties to Russia's President Vladimir Putin.