Mnangagwa admits government has been fuelling black market, paying US$1500 for US$300 airline ticket

Meekly, the Public Sector, which accounts for over 70 percent of fuel purchases in the market, has been a price-taker! Even players who obtain their fuel from our NOCZIM at official rate and at prices gazetted by our own Zera have been abusing ministries, departments and agencies using the same extortionate pricing formulae. That way, billions of dollars have been paid out to these devious suppliers.

What these extortionate suppliers then do is to pay off NOCZIM at gazetted prices, and using the official exchange rate. The rest of the monies from such extortionate sales then find way into the black market, thus precipitating the exchange rate turbulence that has been buffeting the whole economy. Government has thus been an accessory in the flouting of its own laws in the market.

Another illustrative abuse came from travel agents and hoteliers. In several instances, Government officials flying from Harare to Victoria Falls would be sold tickets for $699 000 or more a-piece. At the official rate, this amounts to more than US$1 500 a ticket to Victoria Falls!

This is close to what it costs an air traveller in economy class to fly to Europe! Meanwhile, Air Zimbabwe, the sole carrier of Government delegations, only charges about US$300 a ticket!

The issue is what happens to the huge difference? It finds its way into the black market.

A random check has shown that such abusive pricing in respect of procurements of goods and services by the Public Sector is more of a rule than an exception.

That way, our financial services have been destabilised, with the Public Sector being an unwitting player. I have now directed the Fiscal Ministry to send back all invoices from Government ministries, departments and agencies for thorough re-validation before payment.

Any accounting officer who allows such pricing malpractices to escape their gaze will be deemed criminally negligent and thus personally liable in terms of our Public Finance Management Act (Chapter 22:19).

From now onwards, Government is going to be a prudent procurer of goods and services. That means flexing its purchasing muscle in the market, in the double sense of demanding favourable procurement terms and going as far as blacklisting suppliers who cheat and rely on extortionate black-market rates for pricing.

Such errant actors must be stopped from participating in the public procurement process.

As already stated, the Public Sector accounts for over 70 percent of purchases in the Economy. That preponderant power should now be used for greater good. We should, in the next few weeks or months, see a gradual return to normalcy in the Economy; we just have to consolidate on the positive fundamentals that have not been that easy to achieve.

Let us all play our part so we speedily reset our Economy on an even keel, and on the path to durable growth.

By President Emmerson Mnangagwa for the Sunday Mail

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