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Cuthbert Mavheko

On 18 April 2019, thousands of Zimbabweans from all walks of life gathered at the National Sports Stadium for the main Independence Day celebrations.

In his speech, President Mnangagwa touched on bread and butter issues, thereby painting a positive picture that ignited hope among the general citizenry. 

After warning business operators to desist from wanton price hikes, Cde Mnangagwa said the Government would employ remedial measures to cushion consumers from the exorbitant price increases of basic commodities by opening more bakeries and CSC outlets countrywide which, he said, will sell their products at affordable prices.

Indeed, this is good news to the country’s hard-pressed consumers who are now so impoverished that even a decent plate of sadza/isitshwala and beef is no longer guaranteed to the majority of them as the prices of mealie-meal and beef have shot up.

Since Finance Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube introduced the two cents tax on every electronically transacted dollar, the price of every commodity on sale in Zimbabwe has shot into the stratosphere. It seems clear, all things considered, that there is an undeclared war out there in the market-place. Producers and retailers are raising the prices of basic commodities with apparent impunity.

They have become so mean and profit-incensed that they do not give a hoot about the misery and suffering they are causing among ordinary Zimbabweans, who now find themselves in a catch-22 situation as a result of a cost of living, which is fast spiralling out of control.

Due to the incessant price increases of basic foodstuffs, which are not only unjustifiable, but also defy all facets of common sense and logic, the average consumer in Zimbabwe has been sacrificed on the altar of social, political and economic expediency.

Indeed, it presents a painful paradox that while the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe (CCZ) was given the mandate to take stewardship of the welfare of consumers, it has apparently abrogated its role as a consumer watchdog and is watching passively from the terraces while consumers are being ripped off in broad daylight by profit-mad producers and retailers.

Alas, consumers in Zimbabwe have, for donkey years, endured many hardships patiently hoping those mandated to protect their rights would one day rescue them from capitalistic business operators, who are fleecing them daily. Consumers have been failed miserably.

This reminds me of Dr Martin Luther King (junior), the late US civil rights activist, who rose to fame for his non-violent resistance to racial segregation, who once said: “In the end, we will remember, not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

The CCZ’s silence is worrisome. It should at least show its presence, no matter how powerless. As the only consumer watchdog in the country, the CCZ has a pivotal role to play in ensuring that consumers are protected and educated on their rights. It’s high time the consumer watchdog crept out of its cocoon of passiveness and save consumers from the quagmire. And it must do that NOW. 

All matters being normal, however, it is self-evident that the CCZ is on the horns of a dilemma. Apart from issuing feeble statements that business operators are short-changing consumers, the consumer watchdog appears clueless in terms of what measures to employ to protect the country’s hard-pressed consumers.

What is even more disconcerting is that some gullible Zimbabweans have swallowed hook, line and sinker deceitful overtures being peddled by the MDC-Alliance and its loyalists that the incessant price hikes of basic commodities are being fuelled by a “non- performing” economy. This absurdity is worse than a fable and can only be believed by idle minds that are wont to believe anything.

The Chronicle is on record for writing analytical editorials about how unethical business operators, some NGOs and the MDC-Alliance are being used as agents of regime change by powerful western nations bent on removing President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF from power.

The simple truth is that it is these western imperialists and their puppets, who are manipulating the economy. Their goal is to install, by hook or by crook, a puppet government led by Nelson Chamisa in this country. Once Chamisa is in power, they will be able to cheaply access the country’s vast natural resources.

Being convinced that what will make or break the country are the twin evils of hunger and deprivation, western imperialists and their puppets are working round the clock to aggravate the economic situation in the country. By hiking the prices of basic commodities, their objective is to whip up the emotions of the general citizenry in the belief that they would revolt against the Government.

Over the years, Zimbabweans have witnessed countless attempts by the MDC-Alliance to get into Government through the back door. Their incessant campaigns for anti-Zimbabwe sanctions and the violent street protests they organised on August 1, 2018 and January 14 this year, bear ample testimony that the power-hungry political clowns and charlatans within the MDC-Alliance will stop at nothing to seize power, even if it means destroying the country.

On social media, we are often bombarded with messages from the likes of Tendai Biti that without the MDC-Alliance in government, the country is heading for an economic Apocalypse.  Of course, these are clearly mere theatrics of politicians who are at the end of their tether.

The truth of the matter is that Zimbabwe today stands at the threshold of a new exciting era of economic prosperity under President Mnangagwa’s visionary stewardship.

Let us put things in perspective in clear language here. The economic recovery process will not be accomplished overnight. The road ahead is rugged and bumpy. Zimbabwe’s economy has been writhing in the intensive care for over a decade now and mending it will not be a stroll in the park.

When President Mnangagwa assumed the reins of power, following the resignation of Mr Mugabe in November 2017, he embarked on the onerous task of steering the country’s battered economic ship out of the stormy seas and guiding it into calmer waters. This, he has done commendably.

Today, investors from far and wide are swarming into the country like bees on a honey-comb to invest in the diverse sectors of the economy. As a result, the country has experienced a significant surge in productivity, which is validated by improved capacity utilisation in industry.

According to the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI), capacity utilisation in industry breached 50 percent last year, for the first time in seven years. Figures from the National Social Security Authority (NSSA) released last year indicate that Zimbabwe now has a workforce of about a million workers. This was corroborated by the CZI, which reportedly said over 800 000 jobs had been created since the dawn of the New Dispensation.

Leading exporters like; Tanganda Tea Company, Zimasco, Treger Holdings, Paramount Garments and Suzan General Trading, among others, have reported significant gains in exports. These are positive signs that Zimbabwe’s economy is slowly emerging from the black hole of recession.

Parting shot: Business operators who are charging exorbitant prices for their products are undermining Government’s national development initiatives. These miscreants are immune to verbal condemnation. Tough, bruising action is the only language they understand. It is thus incumbent upon the Government to implement strong measures without delay to ensure that these errant business operators are kept in check.

-Cuthbert Mavheko is a freelance journalist based in Bulawayo. Contact details:  Mobile 0773 963 448; e-mail [email protected]