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michellejayne · 6 years ago

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First Constitutional Amendment proposal for Zimbabwe in 2002

In 2002 the first constitutional amendment for Zimbabwe was proposed and denied by the people. They denied the amendment because there was a clause in the amendment that allowed a political party ZANU PF to reform and take land to do as they bid. We could have changed the course the nation took, it was a great opportunity to change the situation. People made emotional decisions and failed to take charge of their destiny. Populists had good intentions but backfired in the long run because of principles and guideline of the land reform program that were abandoned. Land reform in Zimbabwe began in 1980 after independence as an effort to more equitably distribute land between black subsistence farmers and white Zimbabweans of European ancestry, who had traditionally enjoyed superior political and economic status. The reason for the placement of this amendment was because there was a widespread feeling in Zimbabwe that it was too heavily influenced by the country’s colonial past and that a new constitution written in the light of the experience of independence was desirable. White farmers were forcefully evicted from their plots/farms leaving the land barren and no form of production ever evolved after their eviction.

The results of the 2002 constitutional amendment proposal denial and evacuation of farmers may have been part of the cause of the economic crisis Zimbabwe has been going through for the past decade, from starvation to hyperinflation all this could’ve been avoided if emotional decisions were not made over the countries future. In 2001 farm workers and animals suffered, some were beaten, raped, killed and went through so much trauma that they lived in fear until the 2002 elections. Populists intentions were to restore what they had lost but eventually greed and power took control and they did not work under the same principles they had in the beginning. They took more than they needed and had no remorse or content for the people.

Under the British rule the best farmland was reserved for the white people, blacks worked on the farms as low paid laborers. The land reform aimed to take land from white rich farmers and redistribute it to poor and landless blacks. The land however was unfairly handed out to Mugabe’s political allies and supporters, most who had no to little knowledge on farming/farming experience. By 2008 there was a food shortage and hyperinflation. Severe drought and tough weather conditions have plagued the country since following the collapse of the economy, 3,1 million Zimbabweans have fled overseas. The educational system in Zimbabwe which was once regarded as among the best in Africa, has gone into crisis because of the country’s economic meltdown. The high school exam system unraveled in 2007, in January 2007 thousands of pupils received no marks for subjects they had entered, while others were deemed "excellent" in subjects they had not sat.

Intimidation and violence in certain areas of Zimbabwe were the hallmark of the pre-election period. After the 2002 elections and violence fiasco the commonwealth suspended Zimbabwe, EU imposed sanctions on the certain individuals including the president in Zimbabwe but locally Zimbabweans were told the entire country was under sanctions, no one wanted to invest in Zimbabwe or assist in any of the problems Zimbabweans faced.

In 2017 there was a military coup imposed by Emmerson Munangagwa because former president Robert Mugabes wife had imposed her rule on the country if Mugabe was to pass on, she began a tyrannous rule which caused an uproar among the people and the politicians themselves as they were now being unfairly dismissed by the wife of the president. Since then Mugabe has stepped down and a new electoral president had been appointed and Zimbabweans looked forward to a brighter future.

In 2019, inflation and prices are on the rise, there is a shortage of foreign exchange and supplies of fuel, food and pharmaceuticals are drying up. The opposition is calling for a transitional government to resolve the worsening economic and political crisis hitting Zimbabwe. President Emmerson Mnangagwa is increasingly under pressure to act swiftly.

On Monday, Mnangagwa met with the country’s business community. specified. The president assured them that he was “working day and night to stabilize the economy.” Signs in Zimbabwe are pointing to a possible rerun of the massive crisis that engulfed the country about a decade ago. The situation was acknowledged by President Mnangagwa: “The fear to lose wealth and savings as happened during the 2008 economic meltdown is current but unnecessary. I greatly appreciate and understand all your concerns and anxieties,” he told the business community.

The 76-year-old leader said that Zimbabwe would continue using the multi-currency system which the country adopted in 2009 after abandoning its worthless currency. But the hard currencies – mainly the US dollar and South African rand -, making up the system together with government issued so called bond notes, have been hard to find lately on the formal market. And many in Zimbabwe believe that the time has come to scrap bond notes altogether. Economist John Robertson explains why it is a mistake not to: “The existence of the bond notes caused the US dollar to go out of circulation.” An end to the bond notes would bring back in the US dollar, which would be good for the economy.

Bond notes, a currency Zimbabwe started printing about two years ago to ease cash shortages and help fight hyperinflation, have been losing value lately. They were supposed to trade at par with the US dollar, but are now almost four against the greenback.

Some aspects of Monday’s meeting displeased the business community. Sifelani Jabangwe, president of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, was upset by Mnangagwa’s claims that manufacturers are hoarding stock so as to be able to increase prices. “If anyone is holding back his stock, it is probably because they are waiting to understand the direction (of the economy),”. Jabangwe went on to explain that many companies have run out of raw materials themselves. “And the panic buying did not affect only customers, it also affected industrialists. Just recently, there was panic buying even of cars.”

Zimbabwe is yet again in a crisis after having hopes raised in 2017, Zimbabweans continue to hope and pray for a better future.

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omgstupendousbouquetbasement · 6 years ago

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Zimbabwe President Doubles Price of Gas as Fuel Crisis Bites

Zimbabwe's president has more than doubled the price of gasoline, hoping the increase will end severe shortages that are fueling public anger even as he departs on a foreign trip to Russia and other countries in search of investment. In a press conference Saturday night, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said the increase in the state-controlled price of fuel should ease the shortages that have gripped the country in recent weeks. The president left Zimbabwe on Sunday on a trip that will end with his attendance at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, angering critics who say he should stay at home to deal with the crisis. The gas shortages highlight that this southern African country is battling its worst economic crisis in a decade due to a severe shortage of foreign currency. The lack of fuel means that police walk for kilometers (miles) with handcuffed suspects because their vehicles are grounded. Ambulances, school buses, public transport vehicles and garbage trucks spend days waiting in line for diesel and petrol. Some motorists camp out at fuel stations where pumps are dry for days. Others simply park their vehicles at the nearest gas station in hopes of being in a prime spot when fuel eventually becomes available. In a stark contrast that is also stoking public anger, a video on social media shows a long line of cars waiting for gasoline along a roadside as what appears to be Mnangagwa's presidential convoy, escorted by motorcyles, zips past the desperate motorists. The fuel crisis is just part of Zimbabwe's overarching economic decline under President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who briefly inspired hope after taking over from his mentor, longtime ruler Robert Mugabe with the help of the military in November 2017. Zimbabwe's economy, which was already struggling when Mnangagwa took over, has dramatically tanked since he narrowly won disputed elections in July last year. Inflation rose to 31 percent in November last year, the highest since 2009, while foreign currency shortages could force some of the few factories still operating to close "in a month or so," said Sifelani Jabangwe, the president of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, the representative body for private industry. "The country is grinding to a halt," he said at a meeting on the economy on Thursday. The drastic fuel shortage sums up Zimbabwe's dire economic situation. "It has been a week now and still nothing," said Alyvene Moyo, at a fuel line snaking for several kilometers (miles) in the capital, Harare. A pillow and some blankets lay on his passenger seat and family members take turns sleeping in the car, he said. "This vehicle is our life. We are already starving and I cannot pay school fees because of these shortages," he said of his sedan, which he has turned into an illegal public transport vehicle since losing his job at a hardware store last year. No one seems spared. At another service station, an army truck drove straight to the front of a long line, drawing murmurs of discontent from waiting motorists. At gas stations where petrol and diesel become available, the riot police keep order, but they get perks: police trucks got to refuel ahead of other motorists. In normal times, security agencies refuel from their own pumps at the bases. The fuel shortage stems from a debilitating currency crisis, say analysts. Before Mnangagwa's price increase, $10 of money by electronic transfer could fetch petrol worth $35 in cash, thanks to a government subsidy aimed at maintaining artificial parity between dollars in cash and funds available by electronic transfer. Zimbabwe abandoned its own currency in 2009 after hyperinflation reached 500 billion percent, according to the International Monetary Fund. The U.S dollar has dominated daily transactions since then. But due to widespread shortages of dollars, most people must now use a government-issued surrogate currency called bond notes, which are supposed to be equal to a U.S. dollar, as well as electronic money. Both are quickly devaluing against the dollar on the black market. Some businesses such as pharmacies are now only accepting U.S. dollars in cash. In the fuel sector where the government controls prices, fuel companies are forced to accept bond notes and electronic money for petrol and diesel at the official exchange rate. The government then provides the firms with dollars to import the products, but the government has not allocated firms adequate funds to import sufficient fuel for the country, leading to the shortages. Analysts said the weekend price increase was expected and warned it could lead to a new round of price increases of food items and other services. "If you look at the black market rates, Zimbabwe had the cheapest fuel in Africa. A liter cost between 40 to 45 cents," said Takunda Mugaga, an economist and chief executive of the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce. "Such pricing distortions inspired by an overvalued exchange rate are very unsustainable, especially when the government is broke," said Mugaga, adding that many workers spent most of their productive time waiting in line for fuel. Announcing the increase, Mnangagwa said the government "will not allow businesses to trigger a new round of price increases." He attributed the shortages to "the growing economy . and rampant illegal currency fuel trading activities." Mnangagwa claimed "certain elements" wanted to use the fuel shortages to cause unrest. Mnangagwa's attempts to control the economy, rather than allow market forces to determine prices, is one of the causes of Zimbabwe's economic woes, say economists. Enterprising Zimbabweans have taken advantage of the lengthy lines. Vendors make brisk business selling food and other items to motorists and others have opened mini-car wash ventures at the queues. At times, the frustration boils over to violent flare-ups between motorists. At one gas station in Harare, police fired tear gas to disperse fighting motorists, while fuel attendants are often targets of attacks by motorists who accuse them of taking bribes to allow some people to jump the line. Public anger is swelling and fuel lines have become public spaces where open anti-government sentiment is voiced despite the fact that people are often arrested for criticizing the president. Mocking Mnangagwa's campaign slogan: "Zimbabwe is open for business," one grounded motorist drew laughter from others in line by shouting: "Zimbabwe is closed for business!" from Blogger http://bit.ly/2Flu4TO via IFTTT

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