Opinion / Columnist
Economic meltdown was top on politburo agenda - cannot ignore it any more
10 Jun 2016 at 00:03hrs | Views
Writer: Wilbert Mukori
On Wednesday Mugabe chaired the Zanu PF politburo meeting and top on the agenda was the worsening cash crunch. Mugabe himself has probably not yet noticed the long bank queues as people fight to withdraw as much as possible before the bond notes are introduced. He missed the queues because he hardly visits the country for more than a few days now before jetting off to Singapore or some silly place via Singapore.
The politburo decided to squeeze this cash crisis before Mugabe jets off somewhere because the regime can no longer ignore the country's worsening economic meltdown; the shortage of cash is just one manifestation of the meltdown. It was very ironic that the politburo meeting should be discussing the shortage of cash with Mugabe given that he is the one who is always travelling and his overseas trips cost $3 million plus each.
By the end of April Mugabe and his family had already spend $80 million of taxpayer's money on overseas trips, according to one local paper. No doubt not even one member of the politburo members even dared to suggest that his globe-trotting had anything to do with the country's cash crunch. As for Mugabe himself, he missed the irony; if you are a tyrant even language lose meaning to accommodate the leader's whim.
Actually Mugabe and his Zanu PF politburo cronies have become champions at ignoring everyone and everything that does not fit with the image of a successful and prosperous Zimbabwe led by the greatest pan Africanist of all times!
Mugabe has struggled to get anyone to bankroll his hare-brain ZimAsset plan. The final nail in ZimAsset's coffin was when Mugabe return from China in August 2015 with the ZimAsset begging bowl still empty; not even his "all weather" Chinese friends were prepared to bankroll his hare-brain plan. But Mugabe being the dictator he is refused to accept ZimAsset was dead in the water and he even at his 25 May 2016 rally, hardly two weeks ago, he still talked of the need to implement ZimAsset.
When Mugabe blatantly rigged the 2013 elections he was confident he would rig economic recovery too. Sadly that has not happened.
He has soldiered on continued with his reckless spending, ignored all the signs of the worsening economic meltdown and pretended his $27 billion ZimAsset plan is alive and transforming the economy. Sadly that too has not worked and the shortage of cash is proof the economic meltdown is very much alive and there is a lot worse things to come! It will not be long before Finance Minister, Patrick Chinamasa, is forced to tell Mugabe there is no money for his next overseas trip!
Some of us have said it many time but will say so again: the only solution to Zimbabwe's worsening economic meltdown and political chaos, that has torn both Zanu PF and the opposition camp alike, is for the country to implement all the 2008 GPA democratic reforms necessary for free, fair and credible elections following by fresh elections.
Only a government, with the people's democratic mandate and the confidence of international community's confidence that it will uphold the rule of law, can tackle the country's many teething political and economic problems, the prerequisite for economic recovery.
Please note, the country must implement ALL THE 2008 GPA democratic reforms as contrast to the wishy-washy MDC-T and the other opposition parties have been calling for. MDC was supposed to implement the GPA reforms during the GNU but failed to get even one reform implemented in five years. The country would not be in this political and economic mess if MDC leaders like Tsvangirai, Biti and Ncube had implemented the reforms. It is therefore imperative that, this time, ALL the reforms are implemented; the nation would be foolish to trust MDC leaders to implement the reforms!
So, without further ado, Mugabe and his Zanu PF cronies must accept that ZimAsset is dead and the only way to end the economic meltdown and the tragic human suffering it has brought is for the nation to implement the political reform necessary for free, fair and credible election. Mugabe has the choice to accept a peaceful negotiated exit or the whole regime will be booted out because the present economic meltdown cannot go on for much longer.
The politburo decided to squeeze this cash crisis before Mugabe jets off somewhere because the regime can no longer ignore the country's worsening economic meltdown; the shortage of cash is just one manifestation of the meltdown. It was very ironic that the politburo meeting should be discussing the shortage of cash with Mugabe given that he is the one who is always travelling and his overseas trips cost $3 million plus each.
By the end of April Mugabe and his family had already spend $80 million of taxpayer's money on overseas trips, according to one local paper. No doubt not even one member of the politburo members even dared to suggest that his globe-trotting had anything to do with the country's cash crunch. As for Mugabe himself, he missed the irony; if you are a tyrant even language lose meaning to accommodate the leader's whim.
Actually Mugabe and his Zanu PF politburo cronies have become champions at ignoring everyone and everything that does not fit with the image of a successful and prosperous Zimbabwe led by the greatest pan Africanist of all times!
Mugabe has struggled to get anyone to bankroll his hare-brain ZimAsset plan. The final nail in ZimAsset's coffin was when Mugabe return from China in August 2015 with the ZimAsset begging bowl still empty; not even his "all weather" Chinese friends were prepared to bankroll his hare-brain plan. But Mugabe being the dictator he is refused to accept ZimAsset was dead in the water and he even at his 25 May 2016 rally, hardly two weeks ago, he still talked of the need to implement ZimAsset.
When Mugabe blatantly rigged the 2013 elections he was confident he would rig economic recovery too. Sadly that has not happened.
He has soldiered on continued with his reckless spending, ignored all the signs of the worsening economic meltdown and pretended his $27 billion ZimAsset plan is alive and transforming the economy. Sadly that too has not worked and the shortage of cash is proof the economic meltdown is very much alive and there is a lot worse things to come! It will not be long before Finance Minister, Patrick Chinamasa, is forced to tell Mugabe there is no money for his next overseas trip!
Some of us have said it many time but will say so again: the only solution to Zimbabwe's worsening economic meltdown and political chaos, that has torn both Zanu PF and the opposition camp alike, is for the country to implement all the 2008 GPA democratic reforms necessary for free, fair and credible elections following by fresh elections.
Only a government, with the people's democratic mandate and the confidence of international community's confidence that it will uphold the rule of law, can tackle the country's many teething political and economic problems, the prerequisite for economic recovery.
Please note, the country must implement ALL THE 2008 GPA democratic reforms as contrast to the wishy-washy MDC-T and the other opposition parties have been calling for. MDC was supposed to implement the GPA reforms during the GNU but failed to get even one reform implemented in five years. The country would not be in this political and economic mess if MDC leaders like Tsvangirai, Biti and Ncube had implemented the reforms. It is therefore imperative that, this time, ALL the reforms are implemented; the nation would be foolish to trust MDC leaders to implement the reforms!
So, without further ado, Mugabe and his Zanu PF cronies must accept that ZimAsset is dead and the only way to end the economic meltdown and the tragic human suffering it has brought is for the nation to implement the political reform necessary for free, fair and credible election. Mugabe has the choice to accept a peaceful negotiated exit or the whole regime will be booted out because the present economic meltdown cannot go on for much longer.
Source - Wilbert Mukori
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