Sunday, 16 August 2026
Prague councillor and ANO’s candidate for mayor, Ondřej Prokop, is set to address allegations concerning undeclared property holdings at a press conference today, following mounting political pressure over omissions in his mandatory asset declarations.
The controversy emerged after reports by Czech media outlet Seznam Zprávy revealed that Prokop had failed to disclose ownership interests in three cooperative apartments in Prague. The politician has previously described the omission as an oversight, stating that he had simply forgotten to include the properties in his declaration.
The issue prompted representatives of Prague City Hall to remove Prokop from his position as chairman of the council’s audit committee on Thursday. The case has also attracted attention from the national leadership of the opposition ANO movement.
ANO chairman and former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said he would await Prokop’s explanation before deciding on any further action. Speaking during a European summit, Babiš indicated that the party leadership would assess the situation after reviewing the details presented at today’s briefing.
According to Seznam Zprávy, investigators also questioned Prokop in connection with a broader corruption investigation involving Prague’s Motol University Hospital. The report stated that Prokop was invited to provide testimony as a witness in November 2025 but declined to answer investigators’ questions.
The media reports further noted that Prokop purchased a four-room apartment in a newly developed residential project in Prague’s Břevnov district last year for approximately CZK 19.5 million. In addition to the cooperative apartments that were omitted from his declaration, he reportedly owns a family house in Úvaly and another apartment in Prague’s Háje district.
The controversy comes at a politically sensitive moment, as housing affordability and access to residential property have become key issues ahead of this year’s municipal elections across the Czech Republic.
The debate over housing has also recently drawn attention to Tünde Bartha, head of the Czech Government Office and a close associate of Babiš. Czech media reported that Bartha’s family rents a municipally owned apartment in Prague 3 at below-market rates. According to reports, the approximately 70-square-metre apartment is rented for around CZK 11,000 per month.
While Bartha is officially registered at the address, reports indicate that the apartment is occupied by two students from Slovakia who are members of her family. The Prague 3 district council is expected to review next week whether the arrangement complies with the conditions of the municipal lease agreement.
The developments have intensified scrutiny of housing-related issues among public officials at a time when affordability, transparency and access to housing remain central topics in the Czech political debate.
Source: CTK
