Former white farmers gang up with MDC to bring in cheap GMO

The state media on Sunday reported that there have unearthed a clandestine plot by former white farmers, especially those in South Africa to undermine the land reform programme.
According the state media their highly placed industrialists said "there is a well-orchestrated plot to discourage newly resettled farmers from farming. The former white farmers, mainly in South Africa have ganged up with their MDC colleagues who have import licences to bring in cheap GMO products into the country.
"They are flooding the local markets with these cheap GMOs leaving newly resettled farmers with nowhere to market their products. The idea is to squeeze the new farmers out of the market and in the process kill the land reform programme," said one industrialist.
MDC-T spokesperson, Mr Douglas Mwonzora, was not reachable for comment last night, as his phone went unanswered.
However, the party's organising secretary, Mr Nelson Chamisa, said he would be interested to know the names of the people who were involved in this scam.
"I am not aware of such a thing. I would actually be interested to know the names of the people involved and where such things are taking place. Call me after 10 minutes," he said.
Mr Chamisa however, did not pick up his phone to give the promised response.
Another industrialist said: "There is even a sickening joke doing rounds that an import licence is now more important than a 99-year lease. Armed with an import licence, these importers just travel to South Africa, buy these cheap GMOs and dump them in Zimbabwe. We wonder why the Standards Association is not doing anything about it.
"Even our policies are not consistent. We don't allow GMO inputs into the country but we allow GMO products. What exactly are we trying to achieve? How do we revive our economy with such a scenario?" said one industrialist.
Another industrialist added: "Farmers are failing to get adequate finance, the finance is costly if you are lucky to get it, payment from institutions like GMB come late, there are no input support schemes and yet we talk of reviving the economy with this flood of imports around."
The industrialist added that after realising the danger caused by the flooding of cheap imports, the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa has since introduced an anti-dumping duty to protect its farmers and industry.
"As Zimbabwe we should follow suit otherwise the noble land reform exercise will come to a halt and subsequently industry will collapse. Remember these two are interlinked," said the industrialist.
In its July 2012 Business Intelligence Report, the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries expressed concern that "our supermarkets are at least 65 percent stocked with goods imported from South Africa and other countries."
Newly resettled farmers, especially those who used to work up early in the morning to sell their products at places like Mbare Musika are the worst hit as that market is now flooded with cheap GMO products from outside the country