Obert Gutu defends Mthuli Ncube

Movement for Democratic Change-Tsvangirai vice-president Obert Gutu has defended under-fire Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube who has been accused by the main MDC of failing the nation.

In a statement today the MDC said President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Ncube must resign.

The party also questioned Ncube’s integrity pointing out that the founder of the company he worked for in Switzerland was involved in a scandal in Angola which should have disqualified Ncube from being appointed Zimbabwe’s Finance Minister.

“There was a serious security lapse in the intelligence community of Zimbabwe when Ncube was appointed Treasury Chief,” the MDC said.

“Even before the arrests, his background checks could have revealed his links to the scandal. It does not matter that the courts are yet to deal with the issue but a person with such credentials cannot be suitable to be head of a Finance Ministry of a fragile economy.”

In what appears to be a response to criticism of Ncube from the MDC, including from party leader Nelson Chamisa, Gutu tweeted: “Isn’t very strange that even people who haven’t managed to successfully run a tuckshop are complaining, bitterly, that Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube has failed to effeciently run the Treasury! How pathetic!”

When asked by Blessing Vava: “Are you campaigning for a job, it’s a pity the way you are looking for relevance”, Gutu responded: “I run a law practice and believe you me, I’m not doing badly at all. I can actually offer you a job and I’m pretty sure I can pay you more than whatever you are earning through whatever you’re doing right now. I understand you’re doing some music promotion or something like that.”

Gutu who has been lambasted ever since his party lost the 30 July elections dismally has refused to budge.

Yesterday, he tweeted: “Zimbabwean economy will NEVER collapse! If anyone out there even imagines that this economy will collapse, then they can remain in their Dreamland.”

This was apparently after Chamisa had tweeted: “READY TO LEAD ZIM OUT OF CRISIS. For a path to a truly new era, we have proposed a 5-point plan to make ZIMBABWE GREAT. There are people who did not believe in what we were saying but I’m sure they now know that whatever and whoever else they believed or still believe is FALSE!”

Zimbabwe is experiencing a rapid decline in the value of the bond note as well as fuel shortage and panic buying of goods since Monday’s monetary policy statement.

Chamisa and his party believe that Zimbabwe’s problems are centred on Mnangagwa’s illegitimacy. He claims that he won the 30 July elections but was robbed by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission though he lost the case at the Constitutional Court.

Ncube has been under fire since he announced a two cents tax on transactions and the Central Bank ordered the separation of foreign currency accounts at real time gross settlement accounts.

He revised the tax by offering several exemptions on Friday but people believe this is not enough.

The Finance Minister, however, believes that Zimbabweans have to go through a painful period to stop the current bleeding.

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