MUGABE AND HIS FINANCE MINISTERS
Patrick Chinamasa, Finance Minster, Zimbabwe.
needed a replacement for Murerwa.
In his previous role as Industry Minister, Samuel Mumbengegwi had threatened businesses, warning he had them“ under surveillance” for being“ in cahoots” with the opposition. He had also told a meeting of local industry and international financiers that Zimbabwe did not need their money.“ We are doing well without them”, he said. Just the sort of Finance
Chris Mushohwe Information Minister,
Zimbabwe
Minister Mugabe wanted. And so in 2007, Mumbengegwi got the job. He was perhaps the worst of Mugabe’ s picks for the role, stumbling around economic terms in budget speeches, butchering the quadrillions in the inflation data, and generally providing free comic relief to the opposition benches. What Chinamasa has suffered is not isolated. Many inside government know that one does not survive long if they keep pestering the leadership with inconvenient truths.
He is just one in a long list of Finance Ministers that have fallen foul of a culture that rewards lies over truth, and appeasement over logic. There is a reason why Zimbabwean government Ministers refuse to tell the truth on the economy, preferring instead to live in denial – it is just how their boss wants them.
By thwarting Chinamasa’ s austerity measures, Mugabe and his Cabinet invite inevitable questions over their commitment to reforms underpinning the ongoing re-engagement process with international finance institutions. Chinamasa has been doggedly pursuing this re-engagement since his appointment in 2013, but after having been cut off at the knees, it’ s hard to see the process as anything other than imperilled.
Zimbabwe owes $ 1, 8 billion to the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and the African Development Bank who are insisting on full repayment before discussing a new financial package, the first since 1999. Reserve Bank governor, John Mangudya, in his own monetary policy which came a week after Chinamasa’ s doomed announcement, pointed out that“ there are some people in this economy who do not want us to pay these arrears.”
“ Sometimes I find it a bit difficult that we are being pulled backwards, not by the IMF, World Bank and AfDB, but by Zimbabweans. If it is being smart, colleagues l beg to differ. We are closing ourselves in a hole. We need to be very careful about the clearance of arrears. It is being done for the people of Zimbabwe,” said Mangudya.
“ Let us put our heads together, this economy is ours together. We all belong here, if the economy is burning we all burn together. It is suicidal not to pay the arrears, because they will continue to accumulate therefore we are not being clever by doing so.”- The Source
2016 | Business Times Africa 49