Life on prepaid cards

How many times each and every one of us felt deceived while giving money for some utility service since he didn't know what is he exactly paying for? Every time? Hundred times? It doesn't matter, since it's enough to feel like only once so the idea of introducing prepaid cards on electricity bill is actually fair since it enables a fair charge of only those kilowatts that were used. Not something more that launches a monthly payment into the sky. The problem is, however that it seems like fair that revolutionary idea was launched from HEP only in order to allow people to buy the electricity like a cell phone impulse they will install in the counter and fill in whenever they spend money... This solution is actually unfair deep down since those who don't have much will be forced to live in the dark eventually.

In Croatia there are companies which downfall and people lost their jobs. Workers of Dioki, for example, were on hunger strike a few days ago, and then they took them to the hospital, their colleagues continued to block the factory in order to gain wages Sanader and Linic's former friend Robert Jezic took away from them. When father or mother, who lost their working positions by chance and ended up without paychecks, have to choose whether to buy food for their children or to pay electricity bills for that month, they usually switch that god-damn bill for the next month hoping things would eventually improve. If someone of them decides to, for example, install the counter and buy credit for the electricity in order to control consumption, than it is clear that choosing between food and light they will have to choose - food. Since, children have to eat, and they can eat in the dark. But, is that the state they want live in? And is that the state that takes care of its citizens?

In the Croatian constitution it says that Croatia is a social state. People in charge in Croatia are social democrats combined with left-oriented parties. So, according to the theory, that should guarantee a certain dose of social sensibility. Or, the way the president Josipovic might say, righteousness. However, what the social state got to do with the fact that in a prepaid Croatia part of people would be forced to choose, for example, between electricity bill and food, those things that should be a standard .Or the state considers that if you can't obey constitutional right on labor, then you shouldn't respect the regulation that guarantees a social sensibility of the estate towards its citizens?

No one is pleading for non-payment of bills, of course. And of course we all know that production of electricity requires money. However, if we initiate the path of prepaid credit for electricity, it is a matter of time when someone will recall that the same form of payments is offered for water supply, waste management, sewage system, heating, kindergartens, hospitals.. So the one who has money, they will be able to bath, drink and heat on and the one who hasn't anything will stink and die from thirst in-between cold walls. Waste will overfill its backyard; his toilets will be clogged since he had no money for a credit that should guarantee that all the dirt will flow down the sewage system. Poor mothers will bring children to this world without a medical help. We will be plucking tooth on our own and cure cancer with herbal tea and cold bandages. To compare prepaid credit for cell phones, that allow usage or communication benefits according to money a user has, with electricity usage it a pure cynicism. Since one can live without a cell phone, even peacefully and calm. Without electricity, however, our life becomes unsustainable, and people who wouldn't have enough money to refill their credit would return to the medieval times. Well, is a man who had no luck for his company to survive or the one who still has his company, but doesn't pay his workers, earned to be punished once more? Like it hasn't been enough!

The state of Croatia takes 100 percent ownership on HEP company and it is reasonable that the idea on introducing the option of paying electricity by prepaid credit wasn't released to public without knowledge of people from the Government who decides on such matter. Maybe it is only one test balloon to see how the public will respond. Whatever that idea was it makes a concept of a state as organized community questionable. Since, there will be no prime minister, minister or a member of the parliament who will have it think whether to buy a prepaid credit of 50, 80 or 150 HRK for electricity. But some Mate, Petar, Tomislav, ..., Marija or Danica will. Those common people will have to choose between dark and food, food or water... And that's why ideas like this one look like they suit a little man but actually it works against him. People could expect such measures from a foreign owner whose profit is the only goal. But they shouldn't expect tit form the own state that should care about people.

Croatia become the state where it is too expensive to live in. Will someone remember and offer a life on a prepaid credit? And as long as a man can refill it with kuna - the man will live, and when he can't do it anymore - he lies into bed. While lying on the bed that way he shouldn't be concerned about turning off the lights since kunas on his credit have expired a long time ago…