Graceful summer: The “neighborhood” collection in Prague 7 helped 17 people
The action’s gracious summer amendment to the law began last October 28 and ended three months later. People in foreclosures, for example, for a black ride or it was enough to repay the original debt, a fee of 908 crowns to the executor and often got rid of huge debts. But not everyone had to pay the original principal, although it did not have to be an astronomical beginning.
Therefore, a public collection was set up at the City Hall of Prague 7 before Christmas, the aim of which was to help people pay the principal, ie the debt for which they were executed. “We received over 280,000 crowns from more than 200 contributors in a month, “ said Mayor Jan Čižinský (Prague Sobě).
He called it a way to help people get out of “debt slavery,” in which people find themselves in debt for years and who only pay off interest without any prospect of getting rid of it, because they simply don’t save enough money.
Of the 40,000, almost 368,000
Due to interest and penalties, debts can increase up to many times the original amounts owed. “It simply came to our notice then pan B., who works in the cleaning at Sedmička. We helped him with by paying the original debts in the amount of less than 40 thousand crowns for health insurance, thereby got rid of astronomical accessories 366 thousand crowns“Described one of the cases of Prague 7 councilor Jakob Hurrle (Prague to Himself).
Chances for a new life without debt
At the town hall, they also directly selected, with the help of the social department, citizens who could be helped by the gracious summer and help them handle the necessary papers. Many of them actively tried to solve their situation, but they lacked money. In the end, 17 people managed to borrow from the collection. Many of them can now rest and work without fear that the executor will deduct money from their paychecks and they may leave the gray economy. It often happens that people with executions prefer to work illegally.
The money from the collection also helped to pay the debt for the black ride to Mrs. G., who has to take care of two children herself after the death of her husband. Although she owed “only” a little over 11,000, it basically paralyzed her. Thanks to the gracious summer, it was enough to pay less than five thousand crowns from the public collection for 2 fines and it was debt-free.
At the town hall, they also decided to help people who did not fall into the gracious summer, but the town hall decided to forgive their debt. She was one of them Mrs. K., who has already been deducted by a large part of the paycheck for ten years.
She has already paid more than double the principal
She owed 185 thousand crown for rent, whole but for years she paid only interest and other accessories. She paid more than twice the original debt, over 440 thousand crownswithout approaching its repayment. She simply did not have a chance to earn money to repay the principal, because she is on a disability pension and still works as a full-time cleaner. Now, for the first time in ten years, he has seen the moment when the entire paycheck will come to his account.
Although the gracious summer event was over, there was already talk among politicians that it could be repeated.
Jan Čižinský.
Author: Blesk: Czech News Center, as / Martin Sekanina