Broke Zim sells US embassy April 1, 2014 NewsDay by Everson Mushava
Foreign Affairs permanent secretary Joey Bimha told NewsDay yesterday that the Zimbabwean government had decided to sell the building in order to purchase a smaller property that corresponds with its leaner staff complement.
“We intend to sell that one and buy another one,” Bimha said.
“The building is too big. We bought it when we had a bigger staff complement. At the moment, we have a small staff complement and it is becoming expensive to maintain the whole building when it is not fully utilised.”
Bimha said government had engaged an estate agency to value the property, carry out the transactions and scout for a smaller building.
Efforts to get details of the value of the property from Hollywood Real Estate Agencies, the company that installed a billboard inviting bids for the sale of the building, were fruitless as the company representatives were not forthcoming with answers.
Zimbabwe has two embassies in the US, one in DC and another in New York.The country has 40 embassies and five consulates around the globe.
The cash-strapped government has been struggling to pay its embassy staff in various countries.
In February, Zimbabwe’s foreign missions were saddled with a $13 million debt. Treasury did not disburse money to the foreign missions from the 2013 National Budget.
Of the $63,2 million allocated to embassies last year, only $35,2 million was disbursed. The Parliamentary Portifolio Committee on Foreign Affairs, headed by former envoy Amos Midzi, recently told Parliament that most of the money was absorbed by debts.
COMMENTS
So where is all the diamond money ???
Close some useless missions like the one in South Sudan or DRC
A pariah state does not need any embassies. Close them all they don’t serve any national purpose under ZANU . Being a proud Zimbabwean, I was in Bangkok, checked the embassy address. Took a taxi to the place. Got the building ,went upstairs, only to find it was a Thai individual’s office. I wanted infor on trade .the lady could not help me. I doubt she new where Zimbabwe was.
Was very disappointed.
Only need two one in china and the other in north korea
Di ada in Somali, Cuba our comrades
In the Washington office there is a chinese guy who walks around. What the hell are they running the country now.
In February, Zimbabwe’s foreign missions were saddled with a $13 million debt. Treasury did not disburse money to the foreign missions from the 2013 National Budget!
Well that is not surprising because in 2013 Mugabe was spending money as if there was no tomorrow on one thing and one thing only – making sure that he wins the elections. And since he knew he could not win free and fair elections he had to rig the elections. Rigging elections is a very, very expensive business.
He did it but it has turned out to be a hollow victory because the reckless spending has left the nation broke. 34 years of gross mismanagement and rampant corruption had sucked all the blood right down to the marrow out of the national economy. The reckless spending was the sludge hammer blow that knocked the stuffing out of the economy- lights out.
Mugabe was hoping his Chinese friends would contribute something towards the $27 billion ZimAsset – 7 times the $ 4 billion national annual budget – the massive blood, fluid, marrow, everything injection. The Chinese have since said they will not pay even one Yuan = 16 US cents into Mugabe’s ZimAsset begging bowl!
The Zimbabwe economy is not getting up and as long as Mugabe remains in power no one is going to lift a finger to Zimbabwe. It is the economy stupid that is going to force Mugabe out of power; he was able to rig the elections but can never rig economic recovery!
someone is looking to steal the money from the sale of this property, knowing Zimbabweans this proparty is going to be under valued on the sale price and the next building will be smaller but over priced and sameone pockets the difference.
Embarrassing to say the least, I can imagine a shack in skid row being all ZANU can afford. Well that’s some of the wedding costs covered……now we just need to pay for an air ticket to Brussels.
What more can all of you expect…this is the real black Africa, which they have destroyed instead of building. They have minerals, oil, gas, land, game etc….and they still can’t get their acts together. Unfortunately the Shona idiots that rule Zim are ALL responsible for destroying that once beautiful nation. I blame the Matabeles for not doing a proper clean up job in the 1800’s…. What a pity.
Dave Wood, no need for tribal blame. Our economic problems were not caused in 1800 but in modern Zimbabwe by ZANU PF a selfish and destructive political party. What is needed for all of us, irrespective of race, tribe or political affiliation is to focus/concentrate on a united vote and to beat ZANU PF rigging tactics.
Dear Tongoona,
Well said, for how long can we go back in history and lay blame for problems today. We can certainly learn from those who made erroneous judgements in the past such as, Lobengula, Rhodes, Smith, Muzorewa, Nkomo and currently Mugabe. What saddens me is how far we had come as a nation in terms of compatability amongst the people in the 1990’s and only to have it cruelly and swiftly changed through the greed and jealousy of a narrow minded, paranoid ZPF.