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Police officers inspect vehicle licences at a Bulawayo roadblock in this file photo

Tendai Mugabe Harare Bureau
THE Central Vehicle Registry will de-register more than 300,000 vehicles that have not been licensed for the past two years. This follows the expiry of the September 28, 2015 deadline set by the Zimbabwe National Road Administration to license all vehicles with arrears.

Once a car is de-registered, it will be removed from the CVR data base and the owner will be required to get a new certificate of fitness from the Vehicle Inspectorate Department as the first step towards re-registration.

The car also has to be cleared by the Police Vehicle Theft Squad after which the owner will pay a US$160 re-registration fee.

Motor cycles and trailers will pay US$140 for re-registration.

After completing that process, vehicle owners will be asked to pay their outstanding licences before re-registration is effected.

In terms of the Vehicle Registration and Licensing Act, driving a de-registered vehicle is an offence that can attract a three-month jail term or fine and in some cases, both.

Asked to comment on the matter, Zinara human resources director Precious Murove said there was a positive response from the motoring public during the window period but directed further questions to CVR registrar George Makoni.

Makoni said they were not allowed to talk to the media and referred questions to the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development Munesu Munodawafa who was not answering his mobile phone last night.

However, the responsible Minister, Cde Jorum Gumbo, said he would issue a statement on the matter.

“I’m going to issue a statement either today or tomorrow on that matter,” he said.

Government sources told our Harare Bureau yesterday that the de-registration process would start soon to bring sanity to the motoring sector.

They intimated that it would be costly to those who failed to meet the registration deadline.

“The government has realised that some members of the motoring public were reluctant to license their vehicles and as such tight measures should be implemented,” said the source.

“Out of the estimated 1,2 million cars in the country, 300,000 do not have proper documentation and as a country that’s not a healthy situation.

“As such implementation of the de-registration process is going to start soon to ensure compliance”

The source said the government was losing millions of dollars to motorists driving unlicensed vehicles and it was committed to plugging all loopholes in the licensing process.

Former Transport and Infrastructure Minister Obert Mpofu recently said most of the unlicensed vehicles on the country’s roads were those that were issued by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe around 2007 and those issued to Members of Parliament.

He said the government would confiscate all unlicensed vehicles starting January next year.