PRESIDENT Mnangagwa has gazetted Statutory Instrument 213
of 2019 that amended the Exchange Control Act of 2019 which will see
individuals and companies transacting in any other currency other than the
Zimbabwe dollar being fined up to $30 000 or face jail.
The President gazetted the SI in terms of section 2 of the
Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Regulations Act (Chapter 10:20).
According to the SI, individuals and companies will now exclusively use the
Zimbabwe dollar for domestic transactions.
Those transacting in any other currency will face fines
ranging from $40 to $30 000 depending on the category and or jail.
“Section 5 (offences and penalties) of the principal Act is
emended by the insertion of the following subsection (4d) (4e) A contravention
of any regulations made under section 2(i)(d) prohibiting the sale, offering
for sale, quoting, displaying, charging, receipt or payment in any currency
other than the Zimbabwean dollar for goods and services whose purchase, sale or
disposal are or deemed to be a domestic transaction, is a civil default for
which the defaulter is liable to a civil penalty of the category specified in
those regulations,” reads the Statutory Instrument.
The SI further states that Under the Exchange Control
(Exclusive Use of Zimbabwean Dollar for Domestic Transactions Regulations,
2019), no person shall pay or receive as the price or the value of any
consideration payable or receivable in respect to such transaction any currency
other that the Zimbabwean dollar.
However, some transactions have been exempted and can still
be paid using foreign currency. Those, according to the Statutory Instrument
include carbon tax payments for foreign registered vehicles, third party
insurance for foreign registered vehicles, road access fees for foreign
registered vehicles, electronic sealing fees and finances charged by or to
trans-border logistics enterprises or trans-border electronic tracking or
tagging enterprises, among others.
Meanwhile, the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc)
has opened investigations on companies and individuals who are understood to be
illegal manipulating the exchange rate for selfish gains.
Zacc commissioner John Makamure told our Harare Bureau that
the anti-graft body’s pursuit is being jointly undertaken with the Reserve Bank
of Zimbabwe (RBZ).
“Zacc is mandated in terms of the schedule to the
Anti-Corruption Commission Act Chapter 9:22 to investigate any offences related
to corruption,” he said. RBZ Governor Dr John Mangudya said the central bank’s
Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) will crack the whip on errant dealers. Sunday
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