Bulawayo rejects RBZ debt, demands audit Members of the public follow proceedings during a public hearing on RBZ debt relief in Bulawayo yesterday
Members of the public follow proceedings during a public hearing on RBZ debt relief in Bulawayo yesterday

Members of the public follow proceedings during a public hearing on RBZ debt relief in Bulawayo yesterday

Oliver Kazunga and Mpumelelo Nyoni Business Reporters
BULAWAYO residents yesterday demanded a thorough audit of the $1,35 billion Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) debt to promote accountability and establish how the money was used.
Cabinet approved a government takeover of the $1,35 billion debt last year as a measure to capacitate the central bank to perform its core functions.

Contributing to a public hearing held at the Small City Hall, residents told a Parliamentary Portfolio on Budget and Finance led by chairman David Chapfika they were opposed to the manner in which the government handled the matter.

“You’re saying you want to relieve pressure on the RBZ but you’re also putting pressure on the tax payers. As tax payers we strongly believe that a thorough audit should be done to establish how much money was used, for what and who benefited,” said a participant from the floor.

“If it didn’t benefit the nation, then the nation should not be held to ransom.”
Others said the debt takeover bill should be reversed as it was burdening ordinary people.

“As Bulawayo we’re saying NO to the bill. We don’t want to pay the debt. Only big companies were factored in. What about pensioners and ordinary people who lost their money during the economic meltdown,” fumed a woman from the floor.

The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Union (ZCTU) former regional officer for Matabeleland, Percy Mcijo, said it was critical for the government to consider channelling money towards the revival of industries than debts.

Another resident weighed in: “There appears to be distortions on some debts by RBZ. There should be a thorough audit of the debt to establish the exact figures that RBZ owes its creditors; for example on the Meikles debt the figures that are on this debt schedule do not correspond with what Meikles says it is owed by the RBZ.”

The residents continued piling pressure on the committee.
“Right now it’s not clear how the money was used. We are now being told the government is assuming RBZ debt, in the first place when the bank was borrowing we were not consulted. We need to know how the money was used,” said another resident.

Chapfika said the central bank undertook some quasi fiscal activities at the height of the hyper inflationary era that saw it accruing the debt that the government was now assuming.

He said the government was taking over the $1,35 billion RBZ debt to be settled using revenue collected from taxes and other capital raising initiatives.

The meeting recommended that as government assumes the RBZ debt, consideration should also be made on compensating pensioners and other individuals whose money was locked in banks when the country adopted the multicurrency system in February 2009.

“The government wants to retire the RBZ debt but poor people like pensioners are being left out. We want the government to consider compensating the poor,” said another resident.

 

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