Energy and Power Development minister Joram Gumbo yesterday
said his ministry was doing its part bringing plenty of fuel into the country
but government, through the Finance ministry, was failing to buy the fuel which
belonged to international players.
In an interview with The Standard yesterday, Gumbo said it
was not his ministry’s fault that the country was failing to pay for the fuel
that his ministry managed to bring into the country. There were massive stocks
of fuel in the country, he said, but it was not for free and had to be paid
for.
He said the Finance ministry, through the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe (RBZ), was facing an insurmountable task in sourcing foreign currency
to pay for the precious liquid which is already in the country but was bonded
in warehouses.
Gumbo also said although petrol and diesel were available
and in abundance at the Msasa and Mabvuku depots, it belonged to international
companies until payment was made.
“RBZ governor (John) Mangudya has always been telling you
that he needs so much money to buy fuel. I have always maintained my position
that fuel is available in the country but it can only be accessed upon
production of foreign currency,” Gumbo said.
“My role as minister of energy is to make sure that I talk
about a facility, that is why you find I say I have spoken to Trafigura, I have
spoken to Independent Petroleum Group (IPG) to make facilities that bring in
fuel in the country, but those companies bring in the fuel in the country and
when they do that it’s on bond.”
A survey by The Standard yesterday showed that fuel queues
had more than doubled since the festive season.
“My role is to bring the fuel into the country and it is
there but the problem is, I don’t even blame Mangudya per-se, but our economy
is not performing. As it is not performing, there is no inflow of foreign
currency into the country to enable the payment for this fuel,” Gumbo said.
“Mangudya’s role as the RBZ governor or any bank for that
matter is not to go about looking for forex, but to keep the forex that
companies will have made through exports. They keep it and dish it out later
and that is what the process is all about and that is what should be done.”
Standard
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