Chisumbanje Ethanol Plant closure blamed on sabotage

VILLAGERS in Chisumbanje have blamed the closure of the Chisumbanje Ethanol Plant on political bickering and underhand moves to sabotage the project.
The US$600 million plant, closed in February this year, rendering scores of workers jobless.
Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara, who now chairs the Inter Ministerial Cabinet committee on the Chisumbanje Ethanol project, heads here tomorrow on a familiarisation tour.
DPM Mutambara, who heads a committee of eight ministers, said he wanted to talk to all stakeholders to understand the problems facing the project.
"Before sitting down with the ministers involved, as the new chairman of the Cabinet Committee, I want to visit the plant and meet with the people there and see the developments."
The project was expected to employ over 10 000 workers and cut Zimbabwe's fuel import bill by US$200 000 per day (US$73,1 million per year).
Villagers yesterday accused MDC-T leaders in the province of working against the project.
They urged the Government to intervene to resuscitate the project.Workers at the plant are being paid 55 percent of their salaries.
"The project was a welcome development for the community because we had started witnessing growth in the area. Look at the buildings that had started sprouting in the area . . . the banks and even the companies that had started setting up shop in the area," a villager Mr Michael Simoyi said.
The villagers accused politicians of trying to run down the projects.
"There are certain politicians coming here to denigrate the project telling villagers to demand back their plots that are part of the sugarcane plantation.
"Most of the villagers are in subsistence farming and we were hoping that because of the project we would be able to access some of the irrigation facilities under the outgrowers scheme."
Zanu-PF Central Committee member and former Chipinge South legislator, Cde Enock Porusingazi, said the community was dismayed by resistance shown to the project.
"Many of our youths had found employment at the project. The plant was employing youths from the villages and we are dismayed that there are people working against the project.
"We are calling on Government to introduce mandatory blending so that we start benefiting from such an investment."
Another villager, Mrs Handina Mundeta, had no kind words for the political leadership in the area.
"There are people working hard against the project but most of us were not employed. We were getting enough money to send our children to school through the project, but since its closure most of us are struggling to make ends meet.
"There are politicians telling people to demand their land back, but as you know this is a dry area and people who have embraced the project are benefiting from irrigation programmes led by Green Fuel," he said.
"There are villagers who are growing maize at the moment using irrigation facilities from the project."
Villagers also accused politicians of trying to interfere with the project."There are some politicians who were advising us against taking up the plots we were allocated. There are people who took up the plots and they are doing better than we are now.
"This area is dry and the rains are poor. Benefiting from the irrigation programme is better off for most us but we just hope Government ensures that the project is resuscitated so that villagers benefit," Mrs Agnes Mlambo said.