Cabinet decision on companies exposes international reengagement

Cabinet on Tuesday the 22rd of March 2016, after a record 13 hour meeting, took a drastic decision to close all foreign companies that would not have complied with the Indigenization and Economic Empowerment Act by the 1st of April 2016.

This decision is a clear endorsement of Robert Mugabe's nephew and Minister of Indigenisation Patrick Zhuwao's controversial and meaningless directive to close all foreign companies which have not complied with the contested Indigenisation and Empowerment Act confirms what we in the People's Democratic Party (PDP) have long said, that ZANU PF is not capable of implementing any reforms.

The cabinet's endorsement comes as a slap on the face of the IMF reengagement exercise which recently approved Zimbabwe's efforts towards normalizing its relations with various international creditors.

The IMF judged that Zimbabwe's Staff Monitored Programme, which is essentially a reform programme, has been a success yet it is apparent that ZANU PF was indicating right yet turning left.

The PDP in recent months has warned that any effort towards reengaging with Zimbabwe must be based on clear deliverables on the key areas of reform. We further asserted that one such key area of reform was the repealing of the Indigenisation and Empowerment Act in its totality as it was just a haven to promote and sustain ZANU PF's patronage and corruption while chasing away crucial investments into the economy.

Mugabe's statement thus vindicates our position and should trigger serious thought analysis on those foreign and international bodies that had fallen into the mirage of reform which ZANU PF had created.

For the umpteenth time we repeat that ZANU PF is not interested in genuine reforms but in fooling the international community to allow it to access much needed funds from the IMF, World Bank and AfDB. Again we repeat ZANU PF has no reformers but looters and grabbers and it would be foolhardy for anyone to think that they would reform.

Finance minister, Patrick Chinamasa and his team from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe ARE WOLVES IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING while on the other hand Zhuwao and his cabal are WOLVES IN WOLVES CLOTHING, none of them are reformers.

The cabinet decision betrays this position and it is the most articulate message to date that engagement with ZANU PF is a waste of time. Our colleagues in the international community such as the local British Embassy must get the message very clear. ZIMBABWE IS NO ONE'S CUBA!

The attempt to create an illusion of reform is a necessity pushed by the worsening financial woes which is facing this regime.

The government is failing to raise enough salaries for its bloated workforce. For the record, by May 2013 the government had 270 000 workers but by the end of July 2013 it had ballooned to over 500 000 because of ghost workers who were recruited to rig the 2013 elections.

Revenue targets have been missed by an average of 6% every quarter, 98% of the youths are employed in the informal sector where the bulk of them are vendors and cannot pay any significant tax, the 2016 financial statement budgeted for a US$500 million deficit and the economy will grow by at least -2.7% in real terms this year contrary to the illusionary 1.4% of the IMF and Zimbabwean government. All these facts indicate an economy in dire stress.

This is the reason why the regime is desperate for money hence it is pretending to reform from its ways. History has shown that a regime can never change the circumstances that it created in the first place; this is the duty of a new establishment. This is a fundamental truth which the international institutions must be aware as they consider options of engagement with the ZANU PF regime.

It goes without saying that Mugabe's endorsement of his nephew's position puts egg on the face of some bureaucrats in international organizations who have been putting lipstick on crocodile lips so much that they misrepresented the true state of affairs in this country. However, Mugabe did what he does best, which is to show the true colours of the regime.

We hope that as the IMF board meets in May 2016, they would among other things consider the true position of the ZANU PF government with regards to reforms as articulated by its leader and not through some doctored reports from bureaucrats fighting in the corner of one ZANU PF faction.

As PDP we continue with our call that in order to save Zimbabwe from the chaos which ZANU PF is creating, we need a National Transitional Authority (NTA) to oversee the economic recovery and lead a path towards a sustainable electoral democracy.