The ManicaPost
Tendai Gukutikwa Post Correspondent
WHILE Statutory Instrument 64 of 2016 is meant to enable Zimbabweans to appreciate locally produced goods and help in reviving the economy, smuggling of goods from Mozambique is weakening the instrument, a Government Minister has said.
Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs, Cde Mandi Chimene, made the remarks when she visited two of the illegal crossing points in Burma Valley on Monday.
She said despite the lifting of the importation ban of several goods including second-hand clothing, smuggling of the same goods was still rampant in the eastern border province, particularly in the Burma Valley area where there are countless illegal crossing points between Zimbabwe and Mozambique.
She toured the popular Roundabout which fuel and second-hand clothing smugglers use to smuggle goods into the country.
“The smugglers who are evading paying taxes to the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority are also destroying the local industry that the Government is working tirelessly to revive through the SI64. As we speak, these smugglers are selling a pair of shoes for as little as $2 on the streets of Mutare. This is affecting companies that are in the business of manufacturing shoes.
“Manicaland is known as the country’s economic hub, but because of smuggling, it has suddenly become the top player in destroying that same economy. We need to act fast and curb this scourge,” said Cde Chimene.
She urged villagers to unite and form neighbourhood watch committees that will do border patrols.
“If it is possible, you should block the roads and search these vehicles. Use minimum force to apprehend the smugglers,” she said.
She warned law enforcement agents doing border patrols against taking bribes from smugglers.
