MILLERS are allegedly engaged in massive corruption, where
they access cheap maize from Grain Marketing Board, mill a small portion and then divert the rest to
rural areas especially those near the country’s borders where they sell it to
desperate villagers in foreign currency.
As a result, Government has come down on some millers and
cut supplies by about 40 percent. Before, millers used to get unlimited amount
of maize from GMB at a subsidised cost of about $726 per tonne. Investigations
by Sunday News revealed that some millers, after receiving the maize would mill
a small portion and take the rest of the grain to rural areas where it is sold
in foreign currency or at very high prices. Some of the maize is said to have
found its way to Zambia, where it is sold to foreign nationals in Victoria
Falls.
At the subsided price, a 50kg bag of maize costs $66 from
GMB but millers and their cartels would then sell the same bag at R200 which is
more than $210. At these margins, millers are reportedly pocketing as much as
$2 310 from a tonne they would have bought at $726, making a profit of $1 584
which is 218 percent, without breaking a sweat. Sources in the industry said
the millers were exploiting the facility, and were also running away from other
related costs.
“Electricity costs to mill have gone up and besides most of
the millers are situated in areas which are being affected by load shedding.
So, now the millers are simply taking the maize cheaply from GMB and selling it
to villagers especially in areas where they know there is abundant foreign
currency. At this rate they are making the money without an extra cost of
milling, packaging and other related costs,” said a source.
At one time, some millers came under fire as they were
reportedly buying maize from GMB at low rates and then resell the maize to the
parastatal at high prices. GMB is buying maize from farmers at $1 400 per tonne.
Sunday News discovered that some companies that were milling, were also
involved in corruption by taking the mealie-meal to rural areas and places
where gold panners are found, where it is sold in foreign currency.
Last week, Sunday News was told that mealie-meal in Kezi
was being sold in mobile trucks and a 50 kilogramme bag was going for R300
while in Binga some of the cartel members are exchanging a 10 kilogramme bag of
mealie-meal for a goat. The cartels either resell the goats or exchange for cattle.
“Four goats can then be exchanged for a beast meaning that just 40 kilogrammes
of mealie-meal can buy you a cow. The people who are doing this also know most
of the cattle are not in good condition because of drought so they can even
bargain. After buying the cattle for less than $400 worth of mealie-meal some
just take them for fattening and resell them for as much as US$400,” said one
of the people familiar with the deals.
Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) president Mr
Tafadzwa Musarara said he could not comment on the issue. “This is too
sensitive, so no comment,” he said.
GMAZ spokesman Mr Garikayi Chaunza had earlier confirmed
that GMB has reduced supplies to the millers. In a statement attributed to GMAZ
deputy chairman, Mr Masimba Dzomba who is in charge of the association’s
Southern region, the millers hit back and said the move by GMB would see them
reducing their supplies to retailers.
“I can confirm that our maize supplies from GMB have been
reduced by plus or minus 40 percent and this means that we will not be able to
supply mealie-meal to all retail shops in our sphere of influence, not because
we do not have the capacity but simply because we will not be having the raw
material (maize) to mill,” said Mr Dzomba.
Contacted for comment GMB general manager Mr Rockie Mutenha
declined to comment and referred questions to the Ministry of Lands,
Agriculture, Water and Rural Resettlement. “It is the ministry that comes up
with such directives, so you will need to talk to them,” he said. Deputy
Minister Cde Vangelis Haritatos said such issues also needed to be talked about
“at high levels.”
He said: “What I know is that sometimes the maize is not
enough to cater for every miller.”
Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli
Ncube, while presenting his 2020 budget on Thursday, last week alluded that
Government was aware of the leakages that were happening in the selling of
maize to millers at subsidised rates. He said the subsidy policy whereby
Government funds the procurement of grain at market price and sell to
registered grain millers at subsidised price, has been open to abuse and placed
a huge burden on the fiscus. He said the subsidy will be scrapped from next
year.
“At times the intended beneficiaries do not enjoy the
benefits of the subsidy from Government. To address these distortions,
Government, will, with effect from January 2020 remove the existing grain
marketing subsidies for maize and wheat, that were being provided to grain
millers through the Grain Marketing Board. The intervention will see GMB
selling wheat and maize at market prices, with grain millers having an option
to either import or purchase grain from GMB. This means the prices of basic
commodities such as bread and mealie-meal may adjust,” he said.
However, to protect the vulnerable, Prof Ncube said the
Government will extend targeted subsidies on the production of roller meal,
cooking oil and the standard loaf of bread. Sunday Mail
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