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Nqobile Tshili Chronicle Reporter
THE National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) has raised about $11 million selling scrap metal as a stop-gap measure that is part of its efforts to remain afloat.NRZ’s acting general manager Engineer Lewis Mukwada told members of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructure that the giant parastatal was in dire need of funding.

“We’ve disposed our scrap worth $10,8 million so that we can buy material to repair wagons and locomotives at our workshops. This is one of our short term measures because in 2009 we started operating at $2,6 million a month but we have improved gradually as we are now operating at $3,7 million a month and our goal is to improve even more,” said Eng Mukwada.

He said the company was in the process of engaging private partners in a bid to revive its operations.

“We are engaged in partnerships with four companies who have financed the repair of some of our wagons on a mutually beneficial deal. We are about to get $460 million loan in the medium to long term strategy so that we rehabilitate and replace our locomotives and wagons,” said Eng Mukwada.

He said NRZ’s machinery was obsolete as some of it was bought in the 1970s. During the meeting it emerged the company owed employees $55 million in unpaid salaries.

“In addressing the issue of salaries in 2009 we were paying 30 percent of total salary and we improved to 50 percent guaranteed salary and recently we started paying between 75 to 80 percent for our lowest paid workers and as we continue to improve we hope soon we will start paying them their full salaries and start dealing with arrears,” said Eng Mukwada.

He expressed concern over vandalism of the company’s property saying this has cost the firm millions of dollars.

Eng Mukwada said funds permitting they wanted to construct precast walls at all of their premises to prevent loss of property.

The company’s spokesperson Fanuel Masikati urged legislators to educate their constituencies on the need to guard against vandalism.

The committee chaired by Cde Amos Midzi visited the company as part of its oversight role.

“It’s important to understand that NRZ is a major player in reviving the country’s economy. We will be recommending to the government that NRZ gets maximum support so that is can improve its operations,” said Cde Midzi.

Committee member and MP for Glen Norah, Webster Maondera commended NRZ staff for the efforts to revive the company saying it still has a mammoth task ahead.

“I want to applaud Mukwada and your team for your work. You have an onerous task to prove to prophets of doom that NRZ can be transformed,” said Maondera.

He said NRZ challenges should be kept in public as it was a government institution.