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Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
LEGAL experts believe that the latest Highlanders FC targeted crowdfunding initiative is capable of wiping out the club’s perennial debt, previously said to be close to US$1 million and now equated to $1 million dollars in local currency.

A group of Highlanders members is working on helping clear the debt by targeting 1 000 people to contribute R500 or US$30 each to clear the debt, with the remainder going into the club’s coffers. Other groups of fans have separate initiatives geared towards the same objective.

Experienced commercial lawyers said the club supporters need to move with speed and harness resources to clear the debt.

They say the club must capitalise on the January landmark judgement by the Supreme Court that creditors who were owed before the enactment of Statutory Instrument 33 of 2019 should no longer be paid at the prevailing interbank rate.

Section 4 (1)(d) of SI 33 of 2019 enacted in terms of Section 2 of the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act (Chapter 10:20) states;

“That, for accounting and other purposes, all assets and liabilities that were, immediately before the effective date, valued and expressed in US dollars (other than assets and liabilities referred to in section 44C (2) of the principal Act) shall on and after the effective date be deemed to be values in RTGS dollars at a rate of one to one,” according to the statutory instrument.

This position was later confirmed in section 22 of the Finance Act No. 2 of 2019.

The experts warned Bosso that delaying clearing the debt might see it ballooning should there be a return of US dollars.

“Evidently from 2016 to date the Reserve Bank and the Ministry of Finance have been coming up with various monetary and currency changes. In SI 42/19 the Zimbabwe dollar was basically made the sole currency of trade in Zimbabwe in domestic transactions except for certain limited transactions. The advent of the Covid-19 pandemic has seen the relaxation of the ban on trading in other currencies. This may signal a return to the use of the US dollar as the currency of trade or reporting currency again. It is best that the club clears its debts now before this happens as the value of its debts in Zimbabwe dollars is insignificant, especially if its supporters can raise foreign currency with which to pay off the debts after conversion,” said the expert.

According to the expert, capitalising on SI 33/19 means that the debt Highlanders had, which was expressed in US dollars was converted to Zimbabwe dollars on a one to one basis.

In other words, if the club owed US$10 000 to a creditor with effect from February 22, 2019, the debt became RTGS$10 000.

This,however, will not apply to loans or debts owed to foreign parties as SI 33/19 excluded those from the conversion.

Donald Ndebele, the Highlanders’ treasurer, said the club appreciates the supporters’ initiatives.

“It is quite pleasing to note that supporters are taking a lead in drumming up funding for the club. Together as Highlanders we can clear the debt. Our financials are always there for all to see and our members know the financial situation of the club,” said Ndebele. – @ZililoR