Hungarian president hands mandate to incumbent PM Orban to form gov't

BUDAPEST, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Hungarian President Janos Ader mandated Prime Minister Viktor Orban of the Fidesz-KDNP party alliance to form a new government on Monday following the elections on April 8.

Orban's party alliance won the elections by a large margin, securing 133 seats from the 199-seat parliament.

"The most important task of the new government will be to preserve Hungary's security and its Christian culture," Orban said during a joint press conference with Ader.

Orban won a third consecutive term in the elections, but since he was already prime minister between 1998 and 2002, this is the fourth time that he will be the head of the government.

Hungary's new parliament is set to hold its first session on May 8. On the same day, three opposition demonstrations will take place, a so-called "opposition round table" scheduled for in front of the parliament building, a human chain surrounding the building, and a larger demonstration prepared for the evening.

The opposition claims that the parliamentary semicircle does not represent the real ratios of the Hungarian society, since Fidesz won only some 48 percent of the votes, yet secured more than 66 percent of the seats. Enditem