via Shopping spree: 27 Zimbabwe MPs stuck in China 1 July, 2014 by Veneranda Langa
About 27 local MPs are reportedly stranded in Guangdong Province, China, after they went on a shopping visit to Beijing and missed their Harare flight last week.
The MPs, drawn from both Zanu PF and MDC-T, were said to have organised the shopping trip to Beijing on their own without the involvement of Parliament administration.
Sources who travelled with the legislators, but preferred anonymity, said the stranded MPs got overwhelmed with China and decided to travel to Guangdong Province for further shopping after they were enticed by cheaper prices in that part of the Asian country.
Makoni South MP Mandi Chimene (Zanu PF) was said to be the leader of the delegation and had advised the delegation not to travel to Guangdong as it was very far from Beijing.
However, the now stranded MPs who included Kwekwe Central MP Masango Matambanadzo were said to have ignored Chimene’s advice and travelled to Guangdong Province by high-speed bullet trains.
Other names of the stranded MPs were not yet known by the time of going to print.
“We tried to persuade them not to travel to Guangdong as it is very far and they did not have enough money, but they did not listen,” the source who travelled with the team said.
“The MPs had met some businesspeople in Beijing who often travel to China to buy buses and other vehicles and they were told that Guangdong had cheaper goods and they got carried away.”
The source added: “They did not have enough money and now they are stranded. We do not know where they are sleeping, what they are eating and how they will come back.”
The high-speed bullet train tickets from Beijing to Guangdong were said to have cost about $150.
Guangdong province is in South China and the distance between Beijing and Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province, is about 2 294 kilometres in railway length.
A flight from Beijing to Guangdong takes about three hours and 10 hours by bullet train.
Some of the MPs who were said to have heeded Chimene’s calls not to proceed to Guangdong and managed to make it back on time for the return flight were MDC-T Harare West MP Jessie Majome and a traditional leader from Matabeleland who was not named.
“They decided to take the high-speed bullet train to Guangdong and failed to make it back on time to Beijing to catch the plane. Only one Matabeleland chief who had travelled with them to Guangdong managed to catch the plane. We used Air Zimbabwe and the next plane will be on July 10. I do not know how they will be faring until the 10th and how they will pay for the trip back as they did not have enough money,” the source said.
MDC-T Chief Whip Innocent Gonese said: “I was not involved in organising the trip, so I wouldn’t know which MPs from our party travelled with the team. Chimene should have full details since she was the head of delegation.”
However, both Chimene and Zanu PF Chief Whip Joram Gumbo could not be reached for comment last night.
Parliament sittings resume today and the 27 legislators will miss sessions in both Senate and the National Assembly.
COMMENTS
oooh so the shopping sprees continue while the ordinary people struggle -please Mr. Editor can we have list of names of those who were shopping until they drop
And these are the clowns who are running the country!!!!!
What a tragedy! To think that these people were done in by their own greed… sort of like the whole country in microcosm.
Let’s see whether their visas expire while they’re stranded and they are snapped by their big pals the Chinese government.
Like father like son!!! Kutodza Vasco da Gama
Caught in Canton, how wonderful! This little episode shows just how inept,ill educated and stupid our politicians are! I hope they all stay there.
Joke of the year. ‘Shopping spree’ and ‘not enough money’ don’t go together. Thanks to the dilemna. Fellow Zimbos will note that a lot is happening in this zanupf gvt. We need a transparent gvt. Zanupf must go
Ma1 vanosvika taenda kare hatimire
“….and a traditional leader from Matabeleland who was not named.” Goodness Gracious what is a traditional healer doing on a shopping trip to china? possibly shopping till their drop in the chinese herbal medicine shops ???
having to buy rhino horn and pangolin blood as the chinese have paoched them all
Ha ha ha, what a bunch of clowns!I read that Guangdong is the dog meat capital of China,so if these idiots are stuck there with no money let them eat dog. Dog eat dog ha ha ha!
Ha ha
Say word!!! Me hear that bird flu is prevalent in Guangdong, hope they catch it. Maybe they should appeal to Red Cross for help, stupid idiots kikikikik!!!
They cant even plan a trip and latter on run the country no wonder we are in such a mess!!!
zvakaoma
When in China, do like the Chinese do.Please keep us updated on this one.
MDC included in shopping spree.???????????????/
Stupidity is the realm of politicians of all persuasions! Suffice to say they were all Zimbabweans. What a country of clowns.
aFRICA IS A F*^$%%@ING CIRCUS RUN BY CLOWNS.
You have to give us the list of these shoppers who were on the original trip organized by mandy…
so the buy zimbabwe campaign is for us the not haves? at least the look east policy has claimed casualty. pliz tell them to attend the Chinese Parliament since their absence here will no be felt…..
I can’t see any problem we will just give the Chinese more diamond in exchange for dog meat and snakes and they can stay there for whatever time, probably we have to fill the vacancies
Dazed and blinded by the lights and life in China.Aaah,our men of the people….