http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012 18:43
Owen
Gagare
POLICE are persisting with their controversial investigations into
allegations that Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai misappropriated US$1,5
million he received from the Reserve Bank for the purchase of his official
residence in 2009, in a move which could trigger open clashes between
President Robert Mugabe and the state security forces behind the
probe.
Mugabe approved release of the funds and virtually made it
clear last week
that he was opposed to the investigation, warning police
“not to just rush
to make up things against the prime
minister”.
Since the probe started in June last year, police have
neither confirmed nor
denied there is an investigation against Tsvangirai
underway, although the
Zimbabwe Independent has unassailable proof that they
were doing it.
This week police chief spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena said
they were “not giving
a comment on the matter”.
Police
Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri, a member of the Joint
Operations
Command (JOC), which brings together army, police and
intelligence services
chiefs, is personally handling the probe, although the
investigations
officer is chief superintendent Alison Nyamupaguma from the
Criminal
Investigations Department (CID). The CID has searched and seized
documents
from banks and other premises hunting for evidence against
Tsvangirai.
Chihuri has written several letters demanding
information from Reserve Bank
governor Gideon Gono who negotiated the deal.
Gono, who initially cooperated
albeit cautiously, has since refused to be a
star witness on behalf of the
state against Tsvangirai as the transaction
was approved by Mugabe, sparking
a fierce fight within state institutions
over the issue.
Police now want to arrest him for refusing to play
ball, although that could
prove to be an uphill task given that he got
approval from Mugabe to do the
transaction.
The situation is
further complicated by disclosures by the Independent last
week that
Vice-Presidents John Nkomo and Joice Mujuru and Deputy Prime
Ministers
Arthur Mutambara and Thokozani Khupe were also currently building
houses
with “state assistance” as part of the programme approved by
Mugabe.
This has put police in a difficult position, although sources
say their case
is premised on alleged “double-dipping” by Tsvangirai who
received US$1,5
million from the central bank and an extra US$1 million from
Treasury to buy
and renovate the same property located at No 49 Kew Drive in
Highlands,
Harare.
Tony West Real Estate identified the house
before funds were released from
the central bank for CBZ to pay the
seller.
Tsvangirai’s relative Hebson Makuvise, who is now Zimbabwe’s
ambassador to
Germany, received the funds on the premier’s behalf and did
all transactions
that later followed as the money was transferred through
various banks.
Tsvangirai insisted last week there was no issue as
the money was a “loan”
and described the investigation as a “wild goose
chase”. This was after
Mugabe had last week come out publicly warning police
to be careful with
their probe.
Despite Mugabe’s pointed remarks
over the case, the Independent, which first
exposed the investigation in
detail, gathered this week that police are
carrying on with the probe,
showing their determination to defy Mugabe and
nail
Tsvangirai.
Sources within the police said this week JOC bosses were
sticking to their
guns, hoping to stumble upon irrefutable evidence of fraud
against
Tsvangirai along the way that would assist them in nailing him
before
elections.
Official sources say security service chiefs
were desperately campaigning
for Tsvangirai’s arrest to eliminate him from
the race to state house.
Although there is no official complainant in the
case, information gathered
this week showed that the police were pushing for
Tsvangirai’s prosecution
with the state being the
complainant.
“The state becomes the complainant in such a matter
although no one has come
forward to file a complaint,” a senior officer
said. “In serious matters
such as fraud and murder, we don’t need a
complainant. If someone is killed
and we have evidence that someone
committed the crime, we arrest that person
and bring the evidence to court,
such as the murder weapon and so on,” the
officer said.
“In this
case, we are banking on our strong evidence with the state being
the
complainant. In any case, in criminal cases, the state is always the
complainant although someone would have filed a complaint. So it doesn’t
matter that no one has filed a case.”
Chihuri has been so
involved in the investigation that he has been
personally writing letters
searching for information. On July 14 last year,
he wrote to Gono asking him
for his cooperation.
“I write to advise that we are carrying out
investigations in the transfer
of US$1 500 000-00 from the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe to CBZ on 13 November
2009, purportedly for the purchase of the
Prime Minister’s House,” Chihuri’s
letter reads.
“I kindly
request you to avail any documents and information relating to
this case
that you may have. In particular we would be interested in knowing
(i) How
the money was requested and by who? (ii) What was the purpose for
the money?
(iii) Is it a loan, if so payable by whom and when?”
The following day Gono
replied to Chihuri’s letter.
“The US$1,5 million was requested by the
Prime Minister, and cleared by His
Excellency the President on 13 November,
2009. He (The PM) wanted more for
both purchase and renovations but we could
only recommend and get authority
for the $1,5 million from His Excellency,
the President, with any balance
required being sourced later and elsewhere
as we did not have the capacity
for more. I hold all the documentation and
background to the loan,” he said.
“The money was for the payment of
the Prime Minister’s residential house
including whatever component of
renovations that were meant to be carried
out. The actual budget figure for
intended renovations was not known nor was
it revealed to me then or to
date.”
The securocrats are also investigating whether Finance
minister Tendai Biti
was not an accomplice and also want him arrested over
the US$500 million
(SDR funds) which the IMF gave to Zimbabwe in
2009.
Mugabe approved the release of Tsvangirai’s funds from both the
RBZ and
treasury, to appease the premier who had partially pulled out of the
inclusive government in October 2009 in protest at Zanu PF’s failure to
honour the Global Political Agreement as well as Mugabe’s refusal to
allocate him an official residence.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012 18:39
Gamma Mudarikiri
/Wongai Zhangazha
CONTRACTS of the three principal constitution-drafters,
former High Court
judge Justice Moses Chinhengo, Priscilla Madzonga and
Brian Crozier, which
expired at the end of January, would be renewed soon
after the completion of
the draft review process.
The drafters’ contracts
expired on January 25, but Copac co-chairpersons
from the two MDC
formations, Douglas Mwonzora and Edward Mkhosi, made this
undertaking after
the trio’s status became a contentious issue with Zanu PF
pushing for them
to be fired on accusations of ignoring popular views to
disenfranchise the
former liberation movement.
Negotiators from the MDC, MDC-T and Zanu
PF met on Tuesday in a bid to
resolve the contested issues which have slowed
down drafting of the country’s
supreme law.
Among some of the
contentious issues are structure of government, devolution
of power, the
death penalty, homosexuality, dual citizenship and an
independent
prosecuting authority.
Mwonzora of the MDC-T said the drafters’
contracts would be extended up to
the completion of the whole
constitution-drafting process while Mkhosi of
the MDC led by Welshman Ncube
added that the drafters would be recalled soon
after the draft review
process was completed and this was not subject to
debate.
“Once
we are ready with the reviewed draft, we will obviously recall the
drafters
to continue and this is not subject to discussion,” said Mkhosi.
This
comes against the backdrop of vehement protestations by Zanu PF Copac
co-chairperson Munyaradzi Paul Mangwana that his party had lost confidence
in the drafters and was lobbying the constitution making body’s management
committee not to approve an extension of their
contracts.
Mangwana told the Zimbabwe Independent on Tuesday that
Zanu PF presented
its complaints to the constitution management committee
accusing the
drafters of being “obnoxious and expressing neo-liberal views”
in their
draft.
Mangwana said the renewal of the drafter’s
contracts was, therefore, not
certain as his party was still waiting for the
management committee’s
response to his party’s request for appointment of
new drafters.
“If their contracts have expired there is absolutely no
guarantee that they
will be renewed,” Mangwana said.
However,
Mwonzora dismissed Zanu PF’s allegations saying the drafters had
done
nothing wrong.
He said the drafters had worked as per the instruction
of the three
political parties, but it was the incompetence of ZanuPF
members who were
failing to act on what the parties had
agreed.
In another development the three parties’ negotiators met on
Tuesday to
review some of the contentious issues but no resolution was
reached.
One negotiator said the issue of dual citizenship scared Zanu
PF.
“Zanu PF is scared that the Diaspora is composed of MDC-T and MDC
supporters. We have a large fraction of Zimbabwe’s population outside the
country and they (Zanu PF) feel that towards an election it’s going to be a
challenge,” said the negotiator.Both MDC formations are advocating dual
citizenship.
On the structure of government, Zanu PF wants two
vice presidents without a
prime minister to accommodate its party structure
while the MDC parties
prefer a president with limited powers and a prime
minister with executive
power.
They also prefer a structure with
one deputy president.
The constitution-making process continues to be
dogged by political haggling
stalling progress and the principals have not
made it any easier by their
failure to deal with sticking issues referred to
them.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012 18:37
Nqobile
Bhebhe
HUMAN Rights activists are taking a cautious approach to Justice
minister
Patrick Chinamasa’s assertions that he would lobby cabinet to
ratify the
United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel,
Inhuman or
Degrading Treatment, saying it’s to shore up support for
Zimbabwe’s
chequered human rights record.
The convention came into effect
in June 1987, but Zimbabwe refused to
endorse it.
Chinamasa, who
was recently delisted from the European Union sanctions list,
said once
ratified this would allow for the prosecution of those alleged to
have used
torture in the process of investigating crimes.
Only last year
Chinamasa defended the country’s human rights record at a UN
human rights
conference in Geneva saying Zimbabwe had reformed its
constitution on
several occasions to improve the country’s human rights
situation.
However, the MDC formations and civil society have
long claimed the
existence of secret torture chambers used by state security
agents to
torture political activists.
A social justice
commentator, Edmore Tshuma, doubted government’s commitment
saying the
prospect of the Zimbabwe government ratifying the UN convention
against
torture would be a dramatic irony.
Tshuma said it perhaps was a
gimmick designed to measure the public’s latest
views about President Robert
Mugabe’s long reign.
“Everyone knows that Zimbabwe is one of the few
countries in the world in
which the state has used torture as a weapon to
silence the opposition and
perceived detractors,” said Tshuma. “The only way
Zimbabwe can get out of
this is through amnesty up to a certain period, but
as it is, there are even
non-state actors acting on behalf of Zanu PF. This
does not exonerate them,”
said Tshuma.
Two civil society groups
in Johannesburg recently launched a legal bid to
compel South African
authorities to investigate and prosecute Zimbabwean
officials accused of
crimes against humanity.
The Southern African Litigation Centre and
the Zimbabwe Exiles Forum said
there were 18 high-level Zimbabwean officials
in South Africa accused of
committing acts of torture.
The
application was lodged in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria last
week
and is set to be heard on March 26.
The MDC-T claims hundreds of its
supporters were killed by suspected Zanu PF
supporters and state security
agents in the run-up to the controversial 2008
presidential election runoff
which Mugabe eventually contested alone after
then opposition leader and
current Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai pulled
out in protest over alleged
state-sponsored violence.
Efforts to have perpetrators prosecuted in
Zimbabwe have thus far hit a
brick wall.
Another human rights
activist Albert Nxumalo said at face value Chinamasa’s
move should be
applauded, but viewed with great caution.
“My take is that Chinamasa and
company now realise that the lobby by human
rights groups to the
international community to arrest and send perpetrators
to the Hague is
gaining recognition,” said Nxumalo.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012 18:33
Herbert
Moyo
POLICE Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri is allegedly resisting
a court
order to release vehicles impounded last year by the vehicle theft
section
at Southerton Police Station in Harare, amid allegations that one
car was
“auctioned” to a senior officer.
Brighton Matikiti filed
a suit in the High Court seeking the release of his
Mercedes Benz E320 and a
Land Rover Freelander impounded by the police.
Chihuri is the first
respondent while the Officer in Charge of Southerton
Police Station
(referred to in the court papers only as Mr Masendu), and a
detective
Mangena from the same station have been cited as the second and
third
respondents.
Despite a High Court order granted in favour of Matikiti
in August 2011, his
cars have not been returned to him, with Chihuri only
submitting an opposing
letter after a final order had already been given in
a default judgement.
The top cop described the police’s failure to
submit opposing papers as a
“bona fide mistake of fact” because officials in
his legal division, named
as Mr Mawodza and Ms Kundai had not fully grasped
what they were supposed to
do.
“I inquired into the circumstances
surrounding the granting of the default
judgement and concluded that it was
not as a result of the respondents’
wilful default but absence of
understanding between the two, namely Mr
Mawodza and Ms Kundai, who appear
to have had the desire to file papers but
failed to grasp what exactly was
required in the circumstances,” Chihuri
said in an affidavit to the High
Court.
Documents seen by the Zimbabwe Independent show that Matikiti
bought the two
cars from a Harare car dealer, Felix Nyirenda, in 2009.
Matikiti
subsequently sold the Mercedes Benz to a buyer who, when he
attempted to
register the car in his name, was arrested for allegedly being
in possession
of stolen property.
It was then that he referred
the police to Matikiti who in turn implicated
Nyirenda. Nyirenda was
arrested together with a Betty Mamvura and Frank Dube
for allegedly
smuggling cars stolen from the United Kingdom.
Both cars were
impounded and sent to Southerton Police Station where they
were to be kept
as exhibits.
Matikiti claimed the police went on to auction the
Mercedes Benz, which was
bought by a senior officer and the charges against
the trio were withdrawn
as a cover up.
The cover up only came to
light when Matikiti tried to recover the vehicles
after being sued by the
man to whom he had sold the Mercedes. Matikiti wrote
to the Southerton
Police and went to the Magistrates’ Court only to discover
that all charges
had been withdrawn. Nyirenda, Mamvura and Dube were
re-arrested and brought
to trial after Matikiti laid a complaint.
However, the trio was
acquitted on December 23, 2011.Under normal
circumstances, that should have
been reason enough for the cars to be
returned to Matikiti as there was no
longer any justification to keep them
as exhibits.
Matikiti
claimed in his court papers that the police held an auction where
the
Mercedes was allegedly bought for a paltry US$150 by a senior police
officer. He also claimed that Nyirenda sent him a message saying the police
were demanding US$5 000 for the release of the car.
Despite the
court order, Chihuri continued to dig in, claiming that the cars
in question
were “tainted” and it would be a “grave miscarriage of justice
and a
perpetuation of a crime if these two tainted motor vehicles could be
transferred and vest title in any person, no matter how innocent or clean
the hands in which they find themselves in”.
He suggested that
the best remedy was to forfeit them to the state under the
Serious Offences
(Confiscation of Profits Act), regardless of whether
anybody would be
prosecuted for the offence. Another alternative would be to
forfeit them in
terms of the Customs and Excise Act as there allegedly was
evidence they had
been smuggled into the country, or to confiscate them in
terms of the
Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act.
A legal source close to the case
said the police had no legal grounds for
holding onto the cars and queried
their insistence that there was a criminal
case when the accused trio were
acquitted.
“It’s unusual for Chihuri to write an affidavit in his
personal capacity
over an issue where he is cited in his professional
capacity,” the source
said. “This clearly shows that he has a personal
interest in the matter. His
(Chihuri’s) involvement should have been
restricted to telling his officers
to release the cars to Matikiti. He
should not even be talking about the
non-payment of customs duty because he
does not work for Zimra,” said the
source.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012 18:32
Brian
Chitemba
FRESH turmoil has rocked MDC-T Bulawayo province as factions
jostle to
replace the provincial women’s assembly chairperson, Senator
Gladys Gombami
who died late last year.
The new clashes follow on the
heels of simmering tensions rocking the MDC-T-
controlled Bulawayo City
Council where councillor Nduna Dlala defected to
the MDC led by Welshman
Ncube while four others are likely to jump ship.
MDC-T insiders said
a fresh struggle had erupted between the party’s
Bulawayo provincial
chairman Gorden Moyo and his longstanding rival
Mzilikazi senator Mattson
Hlalo over the person to replace Gombami.
Daggers have already been
drawn and the factional battle is expected to
escalate in coming
weeks.
Hlalo’s faction has kicked off a campaign for its preferred
candidate Dorcas
Nyoni while Moyo’s group is set to field Jennifer Kawona.
Bulawayo Central
MP and the party’s provincial vice-chairperson Dorcas
Sibanda also wants the
post for herself since it wields more influence than
her current ceremonial
post.
“The women’s assembly is a huge
constituency and determines voting patterns,
that’s why factional wars have
re-emerged,” said a source close to the
goings on.
It has also
emerged that Deputy Prime Minister Thokozani Khupe, a close Moyo
associate,
has been sucked into the nasty intra-party clashes after she
intervened to
stop Kawona from contesting.
“Khupe and her allies are planning to
choose another candidate but it’s not
yet clear who is favoured. However,
behind-the-scenes campaigning is raging
in the province,” said the
source.
Moyo and Hlalo were last year involved in running battles in
the run-up to
the party’s provincial elective conference.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012
18:28
Happiness Zengeni
SINCE the introduction of a multi-currency
regime in 2009, Zimbabwe has made
progress towards macro-economic
stabilisation. Inflation came down from
billion-percentage record highs to
4,3% in January, while the economy has
registered substantial growth rates
in the past three years albeit coming
from a low base.
The growth in the
economy was largely driven by exogenous factors due to
firming international
prices of commodities and metals. Zimbabwe has been
recovering significantly
mainly because of dollarisation and exchange rate
stabilisation which
normally produce a major rebound after years of decline.
Under
dollarisation, transaction costs of doing international business have
come
down as the conversion process to and from the local currency was
eliminated.
Dollarisation has also eliminated the risk of high
inflation and currency
devaluation. This is premised on the fact that in a
dollarisation system,
the dollarised economy cannot devalue the anchor
currency it has adopted.
Government adopted a multi-currency system,
allowing the United States
dollar, rand and pound, among other currencies,
to be used in the economy.
This brought stability in business, making
budgets and planning easier. The
move also eased pressure on payment
systems, while ensuring a smooth flow of
transactions in the economy in a
stable macro-economic environment. Broadly,
this allowed the economy to
rebound after a decade of cumulative decline.
However, the changeover
resulted in serious accounting implications which
have a bearing on the
opening trial balances of businesses as at January 1
2009. The question
accountants had to deal with at the time was how do you
translate a
Zimbabwean dollar balance sheet into a US dollar one? What
exchange rate
would be used? This challenge was even more complicated for
institutions
with year-ends after 31 Dec 2008.
While most of these transitional
problems have been resolved, the real
debate within government and outside
remains what should succeed the
multi-currency regime. Should Zimbabwe go
back to the liquidated Zimbabwean
dollar, adopt the US dollar or join the
Common Monetary Area (CMA), now the
Multilateral Monetary Area, which links
South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland and
Namibia.
Tony Hawkins,
economic professor at the Graduate School of Management at the
University of
Zimbabwe, told the Mandel Gibbs symposium last week that
dollarisation was
by far the most important driver for economic stability.
World Bank
country economist Nadia Piffaretti said the country needs to
maintain the
multi-currency regime in the short to medium term.
Economic Planning
minister Tapiwa Mashakada says in order for Zimbabwe to
stay the course of
recovery, there is need to ensure that the multi-currency
system remains
until 2015.
Presenting the macro-economic framework for 2012
recently, Mashakada said
the economy was projected to grow by 9,4% in 2012,
up from 9,3% registered
in 2011. This growth is expected to be driven by
increased production in
major sectors of the economy, namely mining,
agriculture, tourism and
manufacturing.
However, the major
assumption underpinning this growth is the continuous use
of the
multi-currency system. The other assumptions are the firming
international
commodity prices, especially minerals, adherence to cash
budgeting and a
stable political and economic environment.
Mashakada said the
multi-currency system has to be kept for the economy to
stay on the course
to recovery. Government abandoned the useless local
currency in February
2009.
However, debate is currently raging within certain circles in
government on
whether or not to bring back the Zimbabwean dollar. President
Robert Mugabe
made references to this last week in interviews with the state
media.
Those pushing for the local currency’s return want government
to regain its
control over the economy, thus enabling it to deal with such
problems as
liquidity in the market.
Reserve Bank governor Gideon
Gono has said the multi-currency regime was
fraught with difficulties and
would not be sustainable in the long run. He
said, however, that the local
currency should only return when the
fundamentals are right.
In
his 2012 budget, Finance minister Tendai Biti said the multi-currency
regime
would remain in place until the end of 2012 where it is hoped it
would be
replaced by a single currency for the Southern Africa Development
Community
(Sadc).
Options have been bandied around about the route the currency
system in this
country should take. There are those advocating for Zimbabwe
to reintroduce
a local currency linked to the Multilateral Monetary Area
(MMA), which means
Zimbabwe would revert to its own local currency, but the
exchange rate would
be on a par with the rand.
Analysts say the
MMA would be the best option available because Zimbabwe is
largely
integrated and dependent on the South African economy in terms of
imports,
exports and the volume of traffic, which includes the movement of
goods,
people and skills transfer. This system would make it easier to shift
to the
Sadc single currency.
Then there are others pushing for full
dollarisation in which the US dollar
is adopted as the nation’s currency.
However, economists argue that
dollarisation might not be the best option
because the Zimbabwean economy
was remotely linked to the US economy and too
minute by comparison.
Yet some want the introduction of the
gold-backed standard monetary system
whereby the standard economic unit of
account is a fixed weight of gold.
Others have also called for the adoption
of the Chinese Yuan, arguing that
Zimbabwe’s economic recovery was at the
mercy of the US dollar, which was
facing threats from the global financial
crisis.
Gono, a proponent of this idea, said the Chinese yuan would
benefit the
country more as the US dollar was fast ceasing to be the world’s
reserve
currency. The move would also consolidate government’s “Look East”
policy.
However, most analysts say reverting to the local currency
would be suitable
in the long-term to avoid destabilising recovery and
growth enjoyed since
dollarisation.
Market analyst Jerome Negonde
said the main problem around the
reintroduction of a local currency was
negative perception in the wake of
the previous decade-long
hyperinflation.
“Confidence in any currency is lost if there was
significant loss of value
in that currency in the past. The fact that money
will be printed at will
shows that the country can easily slip back to the
hyperinflationary
levels,” Negonde said.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012
17:30
Reginald Sherekete
THE recently-announced measures by the
Ministry of Finance and Reserve Bank
of Zimbabwe to improve liquidity should
ease challenges being experienced in
the financial sector and the entire
economy in general, market analysts
said this week.
They expect the
measures, which include the restoration of the central bank’s
lender of last
resort (LOLR) status, to result in the decline of interest
rates.
“The
repatriation of nostro accounts provides a temporary reprieve to the
current
liquidity crunch in the market as it gives banks breathing space to
restructure their asset portfolios to bring more cash onto the balance
sheets,” said Brains Muchemwa, an economic analyst.
“The
unlocking of nostro balances and statutory reserves held by the RBZ is
expected to bolster liquidity on the back of an active role of lender of
last resort by the central bank. These initiatives will definitely induce
some liquidity and activity in the money market,” a banker
said.
Banks have been directed to maintain a maximum of 25% of their
nostro
account balances offshore to meet their immediate international
payment
obligations. A nostro bank account is an account that is held in a
foreign
country by a domestic bank, denominated in the currency of that
country.
Nostro accounts are used to facilitate settlement of foreign
exchange and
trade transactions.
The RBZ said the move was
necessitated by serious concerns among
stakeholders that deposits mobilised
in Zimbabwe were being utilised to
support economies of foreign
nations.
“With effect from March 1 2012 banking institutions will be
required to
maintain a maximum of 25% of their nostro accounts balances
offshore to meet
their day to day international payment obligations,” said
Gono. “The maximum
amount of nostro balances maintained offshore will be
increased to 30% from
June 30 2012.”
The repatriation of nostro
balances is expected to unlock part of the more
than US$400 million believed
to be held in foreign banks and ease the
current pressures in the financial
sector.
Gono said the release of excess balances in nostro accounts
and the lifting
of previously announced cash withdrawal limits would improve
the liquidity
situation in the economy and encourage the use of the formal
banking system.
But some analysts said the proposed reforms on nostro
balances were against
the notion of liberalised foreign exchange controls
which permit the
freeflow of foreign currency in and out of Zimbabwe. They
said that the
country was currently benefiting from usage of free-flowing
funds after it
adopted a multi-currency regime and such laws would only
increase country
risk, which impedes foreign direct
investment.
Given that foreign currency balances held at the RBZ were
wiped out through
quasi-government expenditure at the height of Zimbabwe’s
economic crisis,
which was characterised by an acute shortage of foreign
currency, some
corporates prefer to hold the bulk of their deposits in banks
through nostro
accounts.
But Gono said the central bank remained
committed to the continued
liberalisation of the exchange controls.
The
resuscitation of the lender of last resort by the central bank is
expected
to reduce interest rate differentials since the RBZ will be able to
determine the direction of interest rates through the use of the overnight
accommodation rate.
“The lender of last resort functionality will
thaw the inter-bank overnight
funding costs of banks that are currently very
expensive,” said Muchemwa.
“As more reasonable and flexible funding options
become available from the
RBZ, the overall costs of funding liquidity gaps
on bank balance sheets come
down.”
An increase in the overnight
rate will see banks raising their deposit rates
so as to attract deposits at
a cost less than the accommodation rate offered
by the central bank. Banks
have been accused of offering very low deposit
rates as compared to their
high lending rates.
“Eventually that transmits to the lowering of the
general levels of interest
rates in the market, the exact extent of which
will be determined by the
proportion of overnight funding to the quantum of
interest bearing deposits
sitting on bank balance sheets,” said
Muchemwa.
With the annual inflation for January at 4,3%, a proper
usage of the LOLR
tool to manage interest rates should see banks offering
real interest rates
on deposits to encourage a savings culture, given that
the most bank
deposits are transitory.
The central bank announced
the increase in the liquid asset ratio for banks
to 30% in a bid to promote
prudential liquidity management.
Analysts said the move will bring
down loan-to-deposit ratios for banks,
given that the rate averaged 72% by
the end of December 2011. This will
impact on loan provision to the private
sector and ultimately affect credit
expansion and growth in the
economy.
Muchemwa said: “The increase in liquid asset ratio
definitely affects the
ability of banks to underwrite more loans, but
considering the need to have
liquid banks in a tight market, it is more
important to have bigger liquid
asset portfolios on banks’ balance sheet so
that they are able to discharge
their obligations effectively and equally
reduce impacts of systemic risks.”
However, some analysts say these measures
are cosmetic and will not resolve
the problem mainly caused by a poor
balance-of -payment position.
As at February 3, total banking sector
deposits had increased to US$3,45
billion whilst total loans remained static
at around US$2,78 billion. In
proposals to the central bank, Bankers
Association of Zimbabwe said the loan
to deposit ratio should be maintained
at around 70%, 10% below the current
80% average.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012
17:27
Gamma Mudarikiri
ZIMBABWE’S bank deposits to December last
year grew 44% to US$3,32 billion
from US$2,33 billion in the same period in
2010 despite the current
liquidity crunch.
According to the Africa
Development Bank (AfDB) February monthly review
report, the increase was
driven by economic recovery and improving depositor
confidence.
The AfDB, however, said the level of bank deposits
reflected low average
incomes in most sectors of the economy and low
savings, with more money
circulating outside the formal banking sector than
within it.
The increase in deposits, according to the AfDB, has not
improved liquidity.
As of December 31 2011, demand deposits
registered 57,4 %, saving and short
term deposits 33% while long-term
deposits remained suppressed at 9,6 %.
Short-term deposits continue
to dominate the total deposits, a situation
which the AfDB said did not
support long term investments.
“The composition of bank deposits is
unfavourable for long-term investment
given the asset liability mismatch. It
is therefore not surprising that the
bulk of bank loans to the private
sector are short term loans,” the bank
said.
Banks in the period
under review maintained an aggressive loan book as
evidenced by an average
loan-to-deposit ratio of 82,7 %.
Lending rates however continue to be
high owing to a persistent liquidity
crisis and limited external lines of
credit because of the country’s
perceived high economic and political
risk.
At the end of 2011, deposit and savings rates averaged 8,7% and
2,1%,
respectively.
Zimbabwe’s savings rates are however negative
compared to other countries in
the region, and this is not conducive to
savings mobilisation, the AfDB
said.
Regional savings in the
period under review averaged 6,67% with Mozambique
recording 9,68%, Zambia
7,4% , South Africa (6%) while Malawi registered
3,6%.
Operations of banks continue to be hampered by a myriad of
challenges.
Delayed cash payments and illegal cash externalisation continue
to suppress
the operations of the sector.
According to the AfDB,
banks cited high operating costs which include the
use of emergency
generators to operate automated teller machines (ATMs) due
to frequent power
outages.
Against these high operating costs, bank sources of revenue
have been
limited to non-interest income sources such as bank
charges.
The cash limits which government will scrap in this month
could further
spell disaster to the banking sector, according to the AfDB.
It said cash
limits could weaken bank depositor confidence and cause panic
in cash
withdrawals, a development which will reduce
deposits.
Some of the banks are likely to have their licences revoked
after failing to
comply with the US$12, 5 million minimum capital
requirement. Royal Bank,
the Zimbabwe Allied Banking Group (ZABG) and
Genesis Merchant Bank are still
to meet the minimum capitalisation
requirements.
The AfDB said as of 31 December 2011, ZABG Bank and
Genesis Merchant Bank
had negative capital levels of US$15,3 million and
US$3,2 million
respectively.
The absence of the central bank’s
lender of the last resort facility coupled
with restricted inter-bank
lending continue to hamper operations of the
sector.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012
18:06
Qhubani Moyo
I HAVE no doubt the majority of Zimbabweans
from across the political
divide, including those in Zanu PF, quietly agree
that general elections
should only be held after substantial political
reforms necessary for free
and fair elections to avoid a repeat of the past
electoral experiences.
Given the people’s horrendous experiences during
previous election periods,
it stands to reason that people would not want a
repeat of the past.
Elections in Zimbabwe are now synonymous with political
instability and
characterised by harassment, intimidation, violence and
murder. This is what
polls in this country since 1980 have been about.
Brutality and killings
underlay elections from 1980 up to
2008.
For that reason, if no other, people are always anxious about
the coming on
of elections. That is precisely why well-meaning and
fair-minded Zimbabweans
would tell you that they don’t want a repeat of
2008, or for those old
enough; 1985 or 1990.
There is a clique
straddling Zanu PF structures and state security
institutions which is
desperately working day and night to railroad the
country into early
elections without necessary conditions for free and fair
polls.
Myths have now been created to justify this mad rush
towards elections which
cannot be different from the previous ones given
that conditions have
remained the same. The outcome would also inevitably be
disputed and
therefore the current political stalemate would remain. The
situation could
possibly get worse.
That is why all those with
the national interest at heart and want to see
this country progress are
saying we need institutional and electoral reforms
before elections. This is
specifically the reason why after June 2008, Zanu
PF and the two MDC
formations entered into the Global Political Agreement
(GPA). The agreement
was designed to give the country a reprieve after the
June 2008 bloodbath
and create an environment for credible elections.
However, Zanu PF,
which entered the GPA and signed it willingly, now wants
to wriggle out of
an agreement which saved this country from possible
mayhem. They are using
all sorts of pretexts to stampede the nation towards
elections. To justify
its position, Zanu PF, which actually ruined the
country and reduced people
to paupers, now claims without any sense of irony
the inclusive government
is dysfunctional –– a wholly self-serving
assertion.
Myths are
then created to support and sustain this travesty. The first one
is that the
unity government is completely paralysed and can no longer
function. Thus
they infer that if we have Zanu PF in power, alone after
elections, things
would be better.
The second one is that elections must be held
quickly so that this paralysis
can be resolved by President Robert Mugabe
and his cronies. The other one is
that Mugabe is not supposed to consult
anyone before calling for elections.
Needless to say all these weird
claims have no basis in reality. The
inclusive government may have problems
but its function as a transitional
arrangement is mainly to create
conditions for free and fair elections and
it is capable of doing that if
the GPA is implemented or if Zanu PF fulfills
its side of the
bargain.
The insinuation that Mugabe and Zanu PF would do better
than the current
coalition government is simply unfounded given the scope
and scale of their
failure before 2009. And of course, the contention that
Mugabe can call for
unilateral elections without pulling out of the GPA,
which he said last week
he does not intend to do, is baseless. If Zanu PF
wants unilateral elections
it must first withdraw from the
GPA.
But the reasons why all this premeditated confusion and
uncertainty are
contrived are clear. The Zanu PF clique behind all this
knows only too well
that there is no way Mugabe and his party would win
credible elections
conducted in a peaceful environment. It is evidently
clear the group calling
for early polls without reforms is the same coterie
which ran a bloody
presidential election run-off in June 2008 and ultimately
staged a
smash-and-grab to put Mugabe back in power without a legitimate
mandate.
This group is currently rehashing the same sinister plot to
cause chaos and
suffering to ensure Mugabe and Zanu PF avoid defeat in the
next elections.
During the March 2008 and the subsequent bloody presidential
poll run-off,
the majority of Zanu PF MPs had literally abandoned Mugabe
(and he remains
very bitter about that) after realising he had become a hard
sell to the
electorate.
Although the full story of what actually
happened between March and June
2008 is yet to be fully told, it is fairly
clear Mugabe was about to give up
but was managed and psyched up to fight
back by the securocrats that
surround him. Most of these elements in the
securocracy felt that if Mugabe
were to throw in the towel, they would be
left exposed and held to account
for gross human rights abuses, including
Gukurahundi, and looting state
coffers. This group has accumulated wealth
which it cannot legitimately
account for and will fight to the bitter end,
particularly now that there is
the exclusive Marange diamonds feeding
trough.
It is important to always remember some of the current state
security
service chiefs were directly involved in the Gukurahundi massacres,
Murambatsvina and the 2008 killings, hence their determination to hang onto
power at all costs.
The same clique calling for elections without
reforms is the one that
literally imposed Mugabe as the president in June
2008 to protect its own
interests, while it regrouped and reorganised during
the GPA intervening
period.
However, Zanu PF has not yet fully
recovered from the shock 2008 defeat and
resultant paralysis. So in reality
Mugabe and Zanu PF are not ready for
elections. Apart from trying to scare
away opponents, Mugabe’s body language
and speeches show he is not ready for
polls. He is only putting on a brave
face to sustain the false claim that
other parties are opposed to elections.
Realising that Mugabe is now
old and frail, the group behind early elections
is looking beyond him and
hopes that if he wins, he would not finish his
term and it would then
replace him with a leader of its choice. It’s a
succession issue.
Indigenisation, like land reform, is the rallying call for
this
group.
From nowhere, this group has emerged from the woods armed with
a scandalous
argument that reforms must come or always come after elections,
not the
other way round. But this argument, even given an intellectual
veneer, is
unfounded and tenuous.
The GPA was created to
introduce reforms, mainly electoral ones, so as to
create an environment for
credible elections. So all serious and
well-meaning Zimbabweans, supported
by Sadc and AU the guarantors of the
GPA, must insist on reforms before
elections.
Never again should the people of this nation, who have
suffered all sorts of
horrific abuses under Mugabe’s disastrous rule, allow
evil to triumph over
good.
Moyo is the National Organising
Secretary of the MDC led by Professor
Welshman Ncube. Email: qmoyo2000@yahoo.co.uk
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012
18:00
HAPLESS motorists along Mutare Road on Saturday had to bear the
brunt of
cadres rushing to make it to the 21st February Movement
celebrations in
Mutare. Despite the “ravages” of the “illegal” sanctions the
road was awash
with the latest Mercs, Range Rovers and BMWs which seemed to
have been given
licence to flout the rules of the road.
Even the
hired commuter omnibuses ferrying Zanu PF supporters were given
free rein to
test their cars’ maximum speeds. This was all under the glare
of the police
who were stationed every few kilometres.
As if this was not enough,
motorists also had to contend with an almost
kilometre-long presidential
motorcade, which was also trying to keep up with
President Mugabe’s
helicopter. One of the cars in the entourage, a brand new
Mercedes Benz
E-Class, veered off the road and burst into flames.
It was amusing then to
hear President Mugabe talking about having made “a
defiant statement against
sanctions and imperialism”.
The “revolutionary” party does not like
the imperialists, but they surely
like their cars which they continue to
“defiantly” drive. Since we are now
looking East one would have expected to
see some more oriental car brands.
Instead of these “imperialist” brands,
cadres can choose from a wide array
of Chinese saloons such as the Pegasus,
Sailor and Wingle or even the Great
Wall
Hover-TT.
‘Our people have defied sanctions. This
is a crowd of defiance; defiance of
sanctions and defiance of imperialism,”
he said.
The fact that free food and entertainment were available could have
helped
as well. The Standard reports that an estimated 60 cattle were
slaughtered
to feed guests at the lavish party.
Meanwhile
President Mugabe expressed puzzlement at the losses Zanu PF
sustained in the
2008 harmonised elections.
Speaking at the birthday celebration bash in
Mutare, Mugabe said: “I am not
happy that 20 out of the 26 seats in
Manicaland voted MDC-T.”
“It was a shock. I did not understand what had gone
wrong,” said Mugabe.
The fact that inflation skyrocketed to billions
percent, unemployment rose
to above 80% and there were empty store shelves
under Mugabe’s watch could
have had something to do with it, we
think.
The “huge” crowds that greeted the president in Mutare were
the biggest
ever. They showed the president’s popularity was growing,
Manicaland Central
Committee member Esau Mapfumi said.
That’s a
bit strange because we were told he was always hugely popular in
Mutare. How
then can his popularity be growing? The supporters weren’t bused
in, Mapfumi
insisted.
No Esau. Of course not. Zanu PF never does that does
it?
“I’m still strong to lead,” Mugabe was reported as saying. Will anybody
else
ever get a chance?
Muckraker has enjoyed
reading the contradictions mushrooming in the state
media over the past
week. Here were a couple of examples in Monday’s edition
of the Herald:
“Cops connive with cattle rustlers in stocktheft cases”.
“Police officer in
court for kidnapping”. And then: “Malawi police
delegation hails
ZRP”.
Great stuff guys!
Good to see
Munyaradzi Huni back in action. Last Sunday he sought to justify
the purging
of Zimbabwe’s judiciary in 2000.
Zanu PF got “fed up” with the judges
“frustrating” the Zanu PF government
through their judgements, he
says.
“Zanu PF got fed up with colonial residue on the bench and
through the
Minister of Justice, Cde Patrick Chinamasa, the party went on to
transform
the judiciary.”
“Now South Africa is seized with the
same matter and the ANC, just like Zanu
PF, is going ahead with the reforms
and today Zimbabwe’s judiciary is a
breath of fresh air as it reflects and
represents the black majority.”
So there you have it. When the
government is “fed up” with rulings it finds
inconvenient it transforms the
bench! Is the judiciary aware that it is part
of a Zanu PF race-based
campaign?
Huni refers to Lindiwe Mazibuko as “a
senior ANC official”. In fact she is a
senior DA official. And he seems to
think the South African judiciary and
media are still in the hands of
whites.
Is the chief justice white? Is Huni unaware that the ANC
regards the chief
justice as an ally? And that much of the bench has been
transformed in
recent years?
As for the media, ownership was long
ago transformed. The Mail&Guardian,
Avusa which owns the Sunday Times,
and other leading titles have been in
black hands for some years. They have
“published and been damned” for
exposing the ANC’s endemic
corruption.
Where has Huni been all these years?
The Sunday Mail’s
Business Xtra carried a story telling us “Zim to lure
South African
investors”.
In the same edition we are told “Government moves into Zimplats”.
That
should go down like a lead
balloon!
We were just wondering the other
day what had happened to Zanu PF’s
anti-sanctions petition when a story
about it popped up in the Herald last
Friday. The government had “stepped up
the anti-sanctions drive with
officials converting more than 2,2 million
signatures gathered during the
National Petition Campaign into electronic
form”.
This should be interesting with Zanu PF officials in charge!
What has been
going on during the intervening period? A great deal of
scanning we gather.
What will the EU make of this dubious petition when it
is presented to them?
We were interested to note
that our old friend Godwills Masimirembwa, having
been denied membership of
the Law Society of Zimbabwe (LSZ) on the grounds
of some small matter
involving client funds, has hit back at the LSZ saying
they had no legal
basis to deny him membership and vowed to continue with
his Zimbabwe
Institute of Legal Studies project which he chairs.
The LSZ has said
it won’t recognise the project or any qualifications
emerging from
it.
Masimirembwa says he has applied to the Higher and Tertiary
Education
ministry to be registered as a vocational training
institute.
But LSZ chairman Tinoziva Bere said he would inform the ministry
that
Masimirembwa had been barred from practising.
Masimirembwa
has been active in Mabvuku, we understand, preparing for the
Zanu PF
primaries. Readers may recall his role as Prices and Incomes Tsar in
the
dark days of economic controls when he arguably inflicted more damage on
the
economy than the rest of Zanu PF put together. Then there was the issue
of
the chicken farm which we will save for another
day.
Meanwhile it was interesting to note that
presidential apologist Nathaniel
Manheru has been excusing Chinese workers
in Bikita who have been helping
themselves to tortoises for
consumption.
“What is so unusual about some ordinary Chinese catching
these for the pot?”
Manheru asks without revealing these 40 animals were
thrown alive into a pot
of boiling water? He demonstrates contempt for
Cites, “a convention that
stops us from offloading ‘tasks’ (sic) from
elephants all of them dead” ––
which is more than can be said for the “mere”
tortoises!
Will Cites staff and tourists please note this official
condonation of
cruelty and savagery by Zanu PF’s new
friends.
Last week we had these officials saying it was OK to chop
down trees
designated for wetland conservation. The trees had been set aside
for
adoption by visiting heads of state but were now to be sacrificed to a
Chinese hotel project.
ZTA boss Karekoga Kaseke was quick to say
it was the enemies of our Chinese
allies who were opposing the project, just
as Manheru was prepared to
justify extraordinary cruelty just to indulge our
new Chinese masters. So
much for
sovereignty!
We were interested to note
the discovery of Mr Oscar Munyoro Katsukunya who,
we were told, taught
President Mugabe in 1928. As soon as news got out,
Media minister Webster
Shamu descended on him last week with a posse of
journalists who were amazed
to discover there was somebody in the country
older than the
president!
Mr Katsukunya says he was either born in 1897, which seems
unlikely, or 1907
which is what his ID card says. He said Mugabe as a pupil
at Kutama Mission
came to his and other teachers’ attention because he was
“short-tempered
though principled”. These are similar to observations made
in his biography
Dinner with Mugabe by Heidi Holland.
She
recorded his temperament and capacity to sulk when teased by other boys,
something Shamu omitted to mention during his
visit.
We are amused by the number of
letters or articles appearing in the
government press excoriating the
British in general and Morgan Tsvangirai in
particular. These mailings are
often sent from the UK.
One such mail appeared in the Herald of
Monday and was signed “Cde Cad Mash,
UK”.
He wanted to know why
Tsvangirai hadn’t done more to promote development in
Bindura.
Tsvangirai has recently been to Chiadzwa. Why is it that
he expects Anjin,
Mbada and Marange to build roads but says nothing about
Bindura Nickel
Mine?” Cde Cad Mash wanted to know.
We have
another point for Cde Mash. Why does he pontificate from the comfort
of the
UK? Why doesn’t he come and share his patriotic zeal with the crazies
in
Zanu PF? How many places are there that have gone downhill since
Independence and are crying out for development. Instead of challenging
Tsvangirai to give answers, why doesn’t Cde Mash come and fix things
himself. He might even promote development in Bindura if he sets his mind to
it, instead of attacking Tsvangirai in the Herald of Last Resort which any
fool can do? Come on Cde Mash. Put your money where your mouth
is.
The bootlicking continued unabated
this week. War veterans leader, Jabulani
Sibanda, said President Mugabe’s
birthday was an important day, not only for
the Zimbabwean people and
Africa, but for all other oppressed people the
world over, including the
Aborigines and Maoris.
This was all because Mugabe had “defended”
them at United Nations
conferences apparently.
“In song, dance,
poetry, chantings and various antics,” says ZBC,
“Zimbabweans from different
social backgrounds came together in unison to
express love for their leader
and nation builder.”
Several groups including the business community,
government ministers,
students and diplomats were “out in full force”, ZBC
claims. Whatever that
means!
The
Herald is running a competition to see who can make the most gushing
tribute
to Gushungo.
On Tuesday their letters column carried the following:
“You are a living
epistle and testimony of true leadership not written in
ink but with the
true revolutionary spirit that you are an epitome of. The
devils of
counterfeit democracy know you and tremble.”
It was
signed “Bro Edra, Kadoma”. Look out Kadoma. You have a fanatic in
your
midst!
Muckraker is cutting out all the gushing noises to enter them
in the
competition. Cde Cad Mash and Bro Edra are leading the lickspittle
pack at
present. Other contestants will be announced in due
course.
News that the Zimbabwe Media Commission
is reporting the Sunday Times and
The Zimbabwean to the authorities for not
registering with the ZMC takes us
back to the sinister days of the Daily
News’ closure.
The Zimbabwean media face the same threats and
hostility today that they did
in 2003. Yet Aldo dell’Ariccia seems to think
the position of the media has
improved and Catherine Ashton claims things
have generally improved in
Zimbabwe.
A case of the blind leading
the blind?
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March
2012 17:58
THE Minister of Finance, Tendai Biti and RBZ governor Gideon
Gono must be
commended for recognising that crisis has developed in
Zimbabwe’s money
market in general, and within the banking sector in
particular.
They have prescribed several remedial measures but, despite
their merit and
pending those measures being implemented and becoming
effective, the crisis
is intensifying. Consequently, the economic recovery
pursued since 2008 is
now being severely retarded and reversed.
A
stable and effective banking sector is a prerequisite for the continued
viability of any economy. Tragically, that prerequisite is rapidly ceasing
to exist in Zimbabwe. With a few significant exceptions, over the last few
weeks the majority of Zimbabwe’s banks have had a serious insufficiency of
cash resulting in a pronounced rationing of bank notes when customers have
sought to effect withdrawals from their accounts.
The primary
cause of that scarcity is that many businesses, and a majority
of the
general populace, are reluctant to deposit their funds into the
banks. That
unwillingness to avail themselves of banking services is
motivated by two
major concerns. On the one hand there is a wide-ranging
concern that
Zimbabwe will dispense with the prevailing multi-currency
regime, and will
revert to its own currency.
The fear of those with funds is that
if Zimbabwean currency is restored,
government or the RBZ will unilaterally
expropriate the foreign currencies
held in the banks and compensate them
with the reinstated domestic currency,
and that that domestic currency would
soon become as worthless as it was in
late 2008.
Compounding
those fears is wide-ranging awareness that several of Zimbabwe’s
banks are
very substantially under-capitalised and risk collapse, in which
event much
of any funds deposited with them would either be irrecoverably
lost or, at
best, would only be partially or wholly recovered after an
extended period
of time.
Those fears are intensified by recognition of many that,
in consequence of
interbank lendings and transactions, even the survival of
adequately
capitalised banks could well be in jeopardy as a “knock-on”
effect of the
possible collapse of the under-capitalised
institutions.
Yet another fear of very many is that the pursuit by
government of Zimbabwe’s
foolhardy and counter-productive indigenisation
policies can (and probably
will) result in changes of ownership and control
of many banks to new owners
devoid of substantive knowledge and managerial
expertise of financial
institutions.
As a result even fully
capitalised banks could, in the future, cease to be
secure havens for
depositors’ funds, and especially so as those
indigenisation policies and
their probable resultant ownership changes are
deterrents to international
banks and other financial institutions extending
lines of credit to
Zimbabwean banks.
The magnitude of financial sector illiquidity is so
great that not only are
many banks unable to service fully depositors’ cash
withdrawal needs, but in
addition are failing to timeously credit clients
with interbank transfers
(RTGSs). Those businesses and other banking
clients that make payments to
suppliers and other third parties by way of
interbank transfers are
immediately charged for the amounts of their
payments, and for service
charges thereon, but in numerous instances the
intended recipients await
credits to their accounts for extended
periods.
The negative economic repercussions of these banking sector
ills are
gargantuan. Manufacturers and traders are not receiving delivery
of inputs
and goods until the suppliers have received the attendant
interbank
transfers. The already constrained purchasing power of consumers
is further
contracted by the insufficiency of funds that they have sought to
withdraw
from their banks.
As a result, trade volumes are
markedly reduced, and the drop in consumer
demand is a major fuellant of
inflation, which is likely to soar upwards if
the money market illiquidity
is not rapidly resolved. The belated receipt
of manufacturing inputs, and
the decreases in consumer demand, are also
likely to force many
manufacturers to reduce their labour forces, thereby
worsening Zimbabwe’s
already high levels of unemployment.
Recognising these and attendant
factors, on February 16 Biti and Gono issued
statements comprising policies
to be pursued in order to restore viability
to the banking sector (and hence
to the economy as a whole), in part
reaffirming previously prescribed
policies as contained in RBZ’s monetary
policy statement issued in January,
2012, and partially announcing yet
further policies. Some of the key issues
addressed were:
All banks whose capitalisation was less than the RBZ
prescribed minimum had
been obliged to submit recapitalisation plans to RBZ
by February 14 2012,
and such recapitalisation must be wholly implemented by
March 2012, failing
which banking licences would be terminated, or
defaulting banks would be
obliged to merge with other banks thereby
achieving consolidation and
enhancement of the capital
resources.
Moreover, Biti recently stated that Zimbabwe is grossly
overbanked, having
26 licenced banks (over and above 159 money-lending
institutions, building
societies, and discount houses). He said that as a
matter of urgency, the
banking sector must be reconstructed to comprise a
maximum of 10 banks, be
such reconstruction achieved by way of mergers of
banks or by bank closures.
With effect from March 1, 2012, all
banking institutions may hold no more
that 25% of their Foreign Currency
Account (FCA) balances in offshore Nostro
accounts, which the banks utilise
to meet their day-to-day international
payment obligations, although that
ceiling of offshore holding may be
increased by the banks to 30% with effect
from June 30, 2012.
The policies are commendable measures to address
the intensifying banking
sector crisis, and the concomitant adverse economic
repercussions, but they
are unlikely to suffice and, in particular, will not
achieve the rapid
transformation of the sector desperately needs. In order
to accelerate the
recovery of the unfavourable banking environment, at least
two further
actions should be rapidly and effectively pursued. These
are:
The Finance minister should forthwith draw down the unutilised
balance of
IMF Special Drawing Rights (about US$150 million) which have been
lying idle
in the United States for almost two years, and should utilise
that drawdown
to stabilise the banking sector.
An authoritative
statement should be issued by government, convincingly
reiterating the
previously announced policy that Zimbabwe will not revert to
its own
currency in place of the multicurrency regime until the economy is
fully
stabilised, and consistently on a substantive growth path, the
earliest date
for such reversion to own currency being 2014.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012
17:56
Reginald Sherekete
THE state of the economy in Zimbabwe remains
a source of heated debate, with
authorities and analysts clashing on what
the real situation on the ground
is. The different reading and analyses of
the economic situation has left
many Zimbabweans wondering whether the
country is on a recovery path, facing
stagnation or even decline in the
short to medium-term.
While Finance minister Tendai Biti and his colleagues
in government are
painting a rosy picture of the situation, analysts such as
Professor Tony
Hawkins and other are sceptical about the economic
outlook.
So the question is: Which direction exactly is the
Zimbabwean economy
heading? Is the current growth in the economy real growth
or recovery? And
how has the growth recorded in the three years’
post-dollarisation measured
against the standard of living of ordinary
Zimbabweans? Is the growth
cascading down to the people?
The
country is currently facing a multitude of problems mainly emanating
from
the current political stalemate which has worsened the country
political
risk profile, ultimately stalling foreign capital inflows
necessary to boost
capacity utilisation and production in the economy.
In his 2012
budget statement, Biti projected the economy to grow by 9,4% in
2012 against
a background of improved performance in sectors such as
agriculture, mining,
tourism, social sectors, finance and electricity.
He said the growth
would be propelled by momentum from the 2011 fiscal year
in which the
economy was estimated to grow by 9,3%, with the mining and
agricultural
sectors contributing mostly to this, having benefited from firm
international commodity prices.
However, analysts are not
convinced by Biti’s projections. Hawkins argues a
combination of internal
and external problems highlighted by the current
balance-of-payments crisis
and rising vulnerabilities in different sectors
would impact on economic
growth.
But Biti says the positive performance in 2012 is expected to
be underpinned
by further growth in finance, expected to increase by 23%,
mining 15,8%,
tourism 13,7%, agriculture 11,6%, manufacturing 6%, and
transport and
communication 6%.
Analysts say the ongoing
liquidity constraints in the banking and finance
sector will limit lending
towards the productive sectors of the economy,
thus undermining Biti’s
forecasts.
They say this would severely impact on the gross domestic
product and
curtail projected growth figures.
Central Bank
governor Gideon Gono has indicated the banking sector remains
“safe and
sound”, notwithstanding underlying risks posed by the operating
environment,
notably volatile deposits, absence of an active inter-bank
market and lack
of an effective lender of last resort function, market
illiquidity,
cash-based transactions and limited access to external credit
lines.
“The weak and troubled banks in the sector are few, small
and of low
systemic importance. Collectively, as at 31 December 2011, these
institutions had a combined market share below 5% in terms of total assets,
deposits and loans,” Gono said recently.
But the current
liquidity situation is increasing vulnerabilities within the
fragile
financial services sector. Banks are currently facing serious
liquidity
problems and that in turn affects lending to productive sectors of
the
economy and growth. The real situation on the ground shows more banks
treading on shaky ground, having difficulties managing their liquidity
positions given the late processing of electronic transfers and caps on cash
withdrawals. Their loans-to-deposit ratios are also unsustainably high,
leaving them further exposed.
“If the situation remains
unchanged, there is a great risk of failure of
more than one financial
institution and because of systemic risk, the whole
sector may collapse,”
said one economic analyst who preferred not to be
named.
A
fortnight ago, Gono announced a series of measures in a bid to contain the
liquidity crisis but analysts are asking if they can restore stability in
the turbulent sector. Some analysts, including Industry and Trade minister
Welshman Ncube, say the measures are cosmetic and would not address the
problem.
Gono has indicated that as at February 3 2012, bank
deposits had improved to
US$3,5 billion but loans remained static around
US$2,8 billion, indicating
tight liquidity conditions. In this state of flux
the situation is changing
fast and that position could have deteriorated.
The stock market started
the year on a turbulent note given the overhang of
the indigenisation laws
which dampened confidence in the market in 2011. The
economy has lost
billions due to the uncertainty created by the chaotic
indigenisation
campaign.
Heightened calls for the implementation
of the indigenisation policy last
week resulted in low sentiment in the
markets and stocks are expected to
take a further nosedive.
As a
result the projected performance of the financial sector in 2012 still
remains largely inflated given the situation on the ground and that the
sector remains clouded by many factors which can underpin the estimated 23%
growth.
Biti says the projected growth in agricultural production
of 11,6% in 2012
takes into account the number of financing facilities
established by
government, the banking sector, co-operating partners, seed
and fertiliser
suppliers in support of the preparation for the 2011/2012
agricultural
season.
But Hawkins projects a fall in agricultural
output because of lack of
preparedness and farming inputs. The rainfall
situation is also a cause for
concern. Recent hailstorms in some parts of
the country, which experienced
heavy rainfall, could affect the tobacco
output estimated at 150 million kgs
in 2012.
Despite good
rainfall in some parts of the country, the Zimbabwe Farmers
Union indicated
in its weekly bulletin last week that the rest of the
country, especially
the southern provinces, namely Masvingo and Matabeleland
provinces and
low-lying parts of Manicaland, Midlands and Mashonaland
provinces had
experienced very long dry periods which have adversely
affected crops and
grazing areas.
“In most of these cases, the crops have permanently
wilted and even if the
rains were to come now, most of the crops will not
recover,” said the ZFU.
Biti also says mining will be a major driving force
behind overall economic
growth in 2012, benefitting from further private
capital injections,
international commodity prices and anticipated
initiatives to minimise
electricity supply interruptions.
The
sector is currently dogged by the disruptive indigenisation policy as
Indigenisation minister Saviour Kasukuwere pounces on major mining concerns
demanding they relinquish their shareholding to government or its
proxies.
Kasukuwere last week issued a 14-day ultimatum to mining
giants Zimplats and
Mimosa, further fuelling uncertainty on the long-term
viability of the
mining sector. Partly due to these problems, Hawkins
projects a stunted
performance for the mining sector in
2012.
What is clear is that the economy may be facing serious
problems ahead,
derailing Biti’s plan and stalling recovery at a time when
Zimbabwe needs to
sustain high levels of growth to get back to the pre-1999
levels.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012
17:51
Dumisani Nkomo
I WAS intrigued by comments attributed to the
disappointing,
newly-reappointed Police Commissioner-General Augustine
Chihuri warning
Zimbabweans to desist from North African-style uprisings
which rocked the
region last year.
While Chihuri is entitled to
his views in terms of the constitution and laws
of this country, he must be
reminded that it was the political and
socio-economic conditions in Tunisia,
Egypt, and Libya, as well as countries
like Yemen and Syria in the Middle
East, which led to popular revolts
against their leaders and
governments.
It was misrule and poverty which forced people in those
countriesto take to
the streets and overthrow their governments in some
cases. It is not like
people in those countries are inherently rebellious as
some would like us to
believe. People often revolt against leaders and
governments because of
their oppressive conditions, not because they hate
the leaders or
governments.
The Commissioner-General expressively
quoted scripture, citing 1 Samuel
Chapter 15 v 23 in which the Bible equates
rebellion to witchcraft. He
forgot to put the scripture in its proper
context and further neglected to
mention Proverbs 29:2 which states that
“when the righteous rule the people
rejoice but when the wicked rule the
people groan.”
Chihuri conveniently forgot the account in Exodus
where God heard the cry of
his people because of the oppression of the
Egyptians and how God used Moses
to set his people free. In short he
expressed a gross lack of appreciation
for God’s concern about injustice and
oppression. Instead of a repressive
system we need a just developmental
state founded upon democratic
principles, human rights and rule of
law.
The people of North Africa would not have taken to the streets
if their
fundamental democratic and human rights were respected. They would
not have
called for the removal of their governments if their leaders
allowed them
freedom of expression, assembly and
association.
They would not have turned against their governments if
they worked for, and
not against, their people. In Tunisia the masses would
not have turned
against President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali if the he had not
oppressed,
suppressed and failed to govern the country properly resulting in
the
economy deteriorating and standards of living falling. It was
repression,
poverty and resultant anger which drove people in those
countries to the
streets.
The people of Egypt would not have
taken to the streets if President Hosni
Mubarak had not turned Egypt into a
personal fiefdom, modelled along the
lines of a fascist-style police state.
Indeed, the people of Libya would not
have rebelled against Muammar Gaddafi
if he had not reduced the country to a
personal farm were political parties
and political activities were banned
and dissenters suffered brutal
repression, including harassment, violence,
torture, disappearances and
murder.
In short, the so-called rebellion of the people of North
Africa was only a
symptom of underlying problems or a popular reaction to
dictatorship,
misrule, corruption and oppression. The demonstrations were a
mere reaction
by the people to how they were governed. Chihuri should not
worry about the
people of Zimbabwe engaging in an orgy of riots and violence
if he thinks
the country is governed properly and people are
happy.
He should not worry if people can express themselves
freely through the
ballot. The people of Zimbabwe expressed themselves
peacefully and
democratically when they rejected the Constitutional
Commission draft
constitution in 2000. They expressed themselves clearly in
the 2002, 2005
and the 2008 harmonised elections which Zanu PF
lost.
They also wanted to express themselves peacefully during
the June 2008
presidential election run-off, but were subjected to savage
brutality. Given
a chance, the people of Zimbabwe will express themselves
clearly, peacefully
and democratically in the next elections.
Our
leaders should desist from North African-style leadership if they do not
want North African-style uprisings. Whether or not the revolts were right or
wrong (although people have a right to free themselves from oppression like
Africans did against colonial regimes), or whether the killing of Gaddafi
was right or wrong, is another matter altogether. What is important to
understand is that the conditions in which people live force them to resort
to certain measures to free themselves. History and even current events show
this.
If the leaders of North African countries had respected the
people they
governed and governed for the good of the people, they would not
have been
victims of “a force more powerful” than tanks, repressive
legislation and
police states. A responsible parent cannot blame a child for
crying and
lashing out when he/she is hungry. Rather they should address the
plight of
the hungry child than scold or intimidate
him/her.
People everywhere yearn for freedom from oppression. Freedom
is a universal
and fundamental right. People always fight to secure their
freedom; it doesn’t
come easy and cheap. They yearn to be free to receive
and impart information
as guaranteed in the constitution; they yearn for the
right to associate
freely without being intimidated; they yearn for freedom
of thought and
opinion without being abused or called names for daring to
think and
challenge the status quo.
There is no need for
governments in any part of the world, including
Zimbabwe, to be afraid of
their own people. Governments should be elected by
the people for the
people, not as vehicles of sectional interests or
personal aggrandisement.
As long as governments govern in the interests of
the people and allow them
to exercise their rights without undue
restrictions, there would be nothing
to fear, except fear itself.
It must be stated that there is nothing
inherently illegal, criminal or
sinful about changing a government
peacefully or changing a regime through
constitutional means. Mass uprisings
are a sign that all avenues of
democratic expression would have been
blocked. In fact demonstrations are
part of the democratic process as
governments should allow their citizens
to express legitimate grievances and
discontent. What is perhaps criminal is
the North African-style of
leadership, not the reaction to it
Commissioner-General!
Nkomo is a political analyst and CEO of
Habakkuk Trust and writes in his
personal capacity. Email: dumisani.nkomo@gmail.com .
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012 17:49
Tony
Hawkins
THE old adage that if something cannot work then it won’t neatly
captures
the essence of the latest Greek bailout plan. Even its promoters
know the
scheme is doomed, but such is the nature of eurozone politics that
national
parliaments must solemnly approve the bailout knowing fully well
that
sooner rather than later, it will crash and burn.
A week
after the deal was signed there is near consensus that one way or
another
Greece will default and possibly leave the euro. That would enable
it to
regain international competitiveness freed of restrictions of the
single
currency on one hand and the high-handed, not to say bungling,
unelected
Brussels bureaucracy on the other.
It makes no economic sense to
expect Greece, with a current account deficit
of 8,4% of GDP, or Portugal
(8,6%), Spain (3,8%) and Italy (3,5%) to compete
on a level playing field
(same currency) as Germany (surplus of 5% of GDP)
and the Netherlands (7,8%
surplus).
The commonsense solution is for the Greeks to take the gap,
but economic
commonsense departed the eurozone scene years ago. For the past
20 years,
the eurozone has grown 1,7% annually, compared with 2,3% a year
for all
industrialised countries and 2,7% for the United States. Yet those
responsible for this track record of failure are still determined to
micro-manage Greece and any other eurozone country in
difficulty.
The bottom line for the eurocrats is the survival of the
single currency,
regardless of the cost to the people of the uncompetitive
peripheral
countries in terms of poverty, unemployment and human suffering.
Ironically,
these are the very same experts who are so free with their
policy advice,
telling governments in Africa, including Zimbabwe, how to
eradicate the very
poverty they are busy entrenching in Southern
Europe.
The irony of this situation will not be lost on African
leaders. Forced for
decades to listen to pious lectures from EU donors on
human rights, good
governance and democracy, they are now watching the
eurozone destroy
democracy in its peripheral states, including the very
cradle of democracy
itself, Greece. None other than German Finance minister
Wolfgang Schauble
admitted as much last month when he proposed that Greece
should postpone its
elections as a condition for further
help.
The parallels with Zimbabwe are inescapable: It is denied
foreign assistance
from the EU and subjected to futile sanctions because
governance here does
not meet the standards required by Brussels.
Zimbabweans are punished
because Zanu PF does not allow free and fair
elections, but the Greeks are
punished because they actually want a say on
how their economy is
managed. EU-style democracy is selective — good for
Zimbabwe, bad for
Greece.
Brussels under strict German
supervision, with hangers-on from the IMF, will
dictate fiscal policy not
just in Greece but elsewhere in the Eurozone.
Voters will not be free to
choose whether they want austerity or growth,
whether they prefer reduced
social spending and lower pensions to higher
taxes. Those decisions will be
made in Berlin and Brussels by the champions
of this new “choiceless
democracy”.
Financial Times columnist Wolfgang Munchau put it right
when he wrote last
week: “We are at a point where success (of the bailout)
is no longer
compatible with democracy.” What matters is not the wellbeing
of the peoples
of Southern Europe, but what suits Brussels, the euro and the
new German
economic empire.
Ultimately, the euro crunch will
come, not from excessive debt levels in the
periphery as Germany insists,
but because the pain of “internal
devaluation” — lower wages and pensions,
longer working lives, high and
sustained unemployment, higher taxes and
lower state spending — will spark a
voter backlash or worse. Those who can
compete using a “hard” euro as their
currency — the Germans, Dutch, Belgium,
Austria, Finland and possibly France
and Ireland — will stay in an
increasingly centralised, markets-hostile,
sluggish-growth economy. The
others will have to go it alone or set up their
own “soft”
euro.
Yet resolving the single currency crisis — a bad idea that went
wrong — is
no more than a sideshow, albeit an important one. Historian
Andrew Roberts
put the EU’s decline into context last month when he wrote:
“Birth rates,
defence expenditures, bond prices, welfare spending versus
wealth creation;
everything that historians look to in order to gauge the
health of empires
suggests that Europe’s fire has gone out”.
The
EU’s breathtaking hypocrisy over democracy aside, two lessons of the
eurozone crisis are potentially important for Zimbabwe. This country’s
dependence on foreign aid is set to grow at precisely the time when the
global aid industry is headed for the rocks. Bailing out their own in Europe
and coming to terms with the home-made debt crisis in the US will force
donors to cut aid budgets over the next decade. This penny has still to
drop. The donors are not the players they think they are. Their
disbursements are swamped by private sector flows not to mention diasporan
remittances. The Dfids, USAids, and eurocrats seem slow to grasp the simply
reality that their taxpayers have wearied of funding their endless round of
seminars, workshops and pretentious reports that no-one reads and that add
no value. That party is over and not before time.
The second
lesson is for Sadc, which must now abandon its proposed monetary
union and
single currency after 2018. If the Europeans cannot make a single
currency
work — and they cannot — what chance is there for 14 Sadc states
with very
different economic structures?
While in 2012 this issue may sound
terribly arcane for dollarised Zimbabwe,
in fact it has very real
significance. Zimbabwe is already part of a single
currency zone.
Peripheral eurozone countries are in economic distress
because they cannot
compete within a single currency zone. Germany, the
Netherlands, Belgium,
Austria and France all rank in the top 20 of the World
Economic Forum’s
Global Competitiveness index, but Greece is 90th, Spain
36th, Italy 43rd and
Portugal 45th. For how long can two such disparate
groups share the same
currency?
Zimbabwe ranks 132 but the currency we use is that of a
country ranked
fifth. How sustainable is that? So long as commodity prices
boom, Zimbabwe
has fresh natural resources to exploit (diamonds) and the US
devalues the
dollar we might get by despite such a massive productivity gap,
but that
cannot continue for very long.
Sadly politicians and
labour unions seem not to understand this. They talk
of relating wages and
salaries to some spurious regional average or to some
arbitrarily-chosen
poverty line. Even worse, some politicians believe that
civil service wages
should be determined by the country’s diamond revenue!
In such a world of
make-believe economics, there is no place for
productivity and
competitiveness. Although per capita incomes (US$8 800 a
year) in Botswana
or South Africa (US$8 300) are 11 times greater than here,
the politicians
believe school teachers or policemen in Zimbabwe can and
should be paid a
Batswana or South African wage. Where is the logic in that?
Output
per head is a good a measure of macro-productivity as there is, which
means
that wages rise with income per head. Moreover, the speed at which
that
indicator improves sets the ceiling for wage awards. If per capita
incomes
rise 7% then average wages ought to increase no faster.
The limited
and unreliable data that we have suggest that since 2009 average
wages have
risen much faster than productivity in Zimbabwe. Given where we
have come
from it is no surprise that we should be trying to play catch-up,
but in a
fixed exchange-rate dollar currency zone this is unsustainable over
the
medium term. Indeed, it is the road to Athens.
Professor Hawkins
teaches Economics at the Graduate School of Management at
the University of
Zimbabwe.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 01 March 2012
18:23
Itai Masuku
JUST yesterday this writer went for a CT scan of
the head (probably to see
if there is any brain in there) at a local clinic.
The last time he had done
so was some 16 or so years ago after he had tried
to be a Michael Schumacher
on the highway. What was surprising was how
exactly the same machinery in
use 16 years ago is still in use
now.
One couldn’t help wondering whether there were no later
technologies. It
turned out there was and this was the MRI scan. The author
had to be sent
for MRIs instead as the CT wasn’t going to be effective on
him for certain
reasons (a polite way of saying “sorry we don’t see anything
in there”).
One can draw parallels from this and apply that to the
local manufacturing
sector. It is pleasing to note that companies are
reporting getting back
into the black in the current earnings season.
However, which report have
you read where there has been investment in new
technology? Most of the
recapitalisation exercises appear to have been on
just clearing debt and
securing working capital, with little or no effort
towards retooling.
Isn’t it that they are using the same old
equipment that dates back to the
90s, 80s, 70s or even 60s and beyond? The
author once worked for a newspaper
that similarly had antiquated equipment
in the form of an old Heidelberg
printing press. When a major breakdown
occurred and replacement parts had to
be obtained, the company faxed
Germany, where the machine had been made
decades earlier.
The
quick response was: “You mean such a machine still exists?” It appears
that
this is still the same case with most of our manufacturing companies.
In the
case of mining, we only see new equipment crossing our borders to
Zambia.
Yet, with that kind of situation, we continue to hear fantastic
figures of
the manufacturing reaching 60% and above capacity
utilisation.
Really? With obsolete machinery? Even if the
machinery was still working
beyond its economic life, surely it can’t be as
efficient as more modern
offerings? And isn’t it the main reason why our
manufacturers are losing out
on competitiveness and market share to foreign
products?
Efficiency by nature should result in better quality
products produced at a
lower price. Take Cairns for example, one analyst
correctly pointed out that
it was cheaper for the company to get rid of its
old assets and invest in
newer technology at a much cheaper price. Mutare
Board and Paper Mills came
to terms with such reality and disposed off units
that were dragging it
behind. The list goes on.
One of our
readers, Chris Veremu, describes the 57% capacity utilisation
figure as
nonsensical. “If this were not a serious issue it would be the
stuff that
made (ZTV comic character) Gringo famous!,” he says. “Our
politicians on
both sides of the political divide know that this is nonsense
but they are
happy to run with it as it helps them look at themselves in the
mirror
without blushing...How do you achieve this growth when the same
industry is
closing left right and centre? Liquidity is almost nil...one
could go
on.”
We rest our case, but not before underlining Zimbabwean
companies need new
technologies and methods of production to be competitive
and viable. Using
archaic machinery and technology will undercut delay, or
hold back economic
recovery.
There is no question that those of us fortunate enough to hold positions of
public trust must be held to a high standard befitting the privilege of
representing the people. On 10 February 2012 the National Executive
Committee of the Zimbabwe We Can (ZWC) met in Surberton, London, in a
follow-up extra-ordinary session to an earlier emergency meeting held on in
Watford to deliberate on the serious allegations levelled against the then
President Ephraim Tapa concerning his leadership at ROHR Zimbabwe.
At
the Watford meeting, Mr Tapa had given a detailed report to the Executive
in
which he claimed to have founded ROHR Zimbabwe himself. He categorically
denied media reports of the allegations levelled against him as spurious and
speculative and remained adamant that he was not under any form of
investigation by any authorities. Tapa denied the validity of the
allegations and insisted there was no evidence to link him with any
wrong-doing as a leader.
At the follow-up Suberton meeting of 10
February 2012, which Tapa did not
attend, the Executive sat to hear evidence
from two members of ROHR
Zimbabwe, Mr Paradzai Mapfumo (Secretary General)
and Mr Panyika Karimanzira
(Information and Publicity). The Executive were
baffled by the depth and
content of the detailed primary evidence of
deception, manipulation, malice,
financial irregularities and undemocratic
tendencies provided and presented
by the two men from ROHR Zimbabwe,
including proof that Tapa was under
investigations by the British Police
(Case Number provided). The Executive
went to extra-ordinary lengths to
conduct a full, fair and thorough review
of all relevant facts, evidence,
rules and procedures, and unanimously
agreed that Mr Tapa’s position as
President of the ZWC had become untenable.
Accordingly the Executive
resolved to expel Mr Tapa from the Presidency of
the Movement. Tapa was also
expelled from membership of the Movement
forthwith. This information was
officially communicated to Mr Tapa soon
after the Executive
meeting.
The Executive expressly resolved that Tapa’s expulsion from the
ZWC was
imperative considering the cumulative effects of his undemocratic
tendencies
over time, coupled with the gross unethical and unprofessional
conduct
implied by the evidence that was unearthed at the meeting. The
Executive
stood to their responsibility and resolve to protect the soul and
good image
of our organisation and demonstrated that the ZWC and the safety
of its
membership are more important than leadership positions. We reject to
be
driven by cheque-book politics and undemocratic autocratic means by those
who want to lead by hook and crook. These elements will stop at nothing to
impose themselves as leaders even if it means using fraudulent means to
achieve their barbaric cause. We ascribe to true authority that is born from
respect for the good character and trustworthiness of the person who leads.
A leader needs to be trusted and be known to live their exemplary life with
honesty and integrity. Anything short of this among the ZWC leadership will
meet with the justice that it deserves!
The ZWC faces many challenges
ahead. We will meet those challenges head on,
deliver the change that the
membership demand, and give our organisation the
results it deserves. As
part of the way forward the Executive unanimously
voted Mr Onias Moyo as new
President of the Zimbabwe We Can. We salute the
membership of ZWC for their
solidarity with the Executive and their
unqualified unequivocal and
unwavering support they have shown to date. All
of us are partakers in the
building up of the ZWC in order to firmly stand
for the rights of all
Zimbabweans everywhere. We are all full participants
in the struggle for
change and TOGETHER WE CAN!!!
ILIZWE NGABANTU!!! NYIKA VANHU!!! ZIMBABWE
YES WE CAN!!!
