A discussion of the corrupt background of the history of the opposition agreement era cannot do without mentioning the person of Zdeněk Bakala. He was famous in many ways, but the story of OKD is closely linked to this period.
In 2004, he entered the mining industry. After founding BXR, its subsidiary Charles Capital bought out Karbon Invest, which controlled Ostrava-Karviná Mines (OKD) and Českomoravské doly.
In addition to the mines, it also acquired 45,000 former workers’ flats. Bakala undertook not to sell the flats to other persons and to offer them on preferential terms to the existing tenants. He never kept his commitment. A dispute arose over the conditions under which he could sell the flats and for how long the agreement with the state applied. The result has been years of litigation and a horde of rebellious workers who have lost long-promised benefits or even the housing itself.
