IN flagrant violation of Statutory Instrument (SI) 212 of
2019 Exchange Control (Exclusive Use of Zimbabwe dollar for Domestic
Transactions), defiant traders in Harare are still charging their products and
services in foreign currency.
Despite the promulgation of a new law stipulating a $6 000
fine for anyone found pricing goods and services in foreign currency, some
traders still take the law into their own hands.
Investigations by The Herald revealed that the products are
being priced in a way that indirectly forces people to buy in foreign currency. When paying in local currency, charges will be too high,
leaving buyers with no other option but to pay in foreign currency.
The SI 212 published last Friday in terms of Section 2 of
the Exchange Control Act (Chapter 22:05), makes it illegal for one to pay or to
receive payment in foreign currency in any domestic transaction.
It means that it has become a civil offence to pay or
receive payment in foreign currency.
The SI further expands the circumstances where such
receiving or paying in foreign currency is unlawful.
It also says quoting, displaying, charging, soliciting for
payment or receiving payment for goods, services, fees or commission in any
other foreign currency is an offence.
The resistance by some traders in the city indirectly seeks
to dollarise the economy.
A survey carried out by The Herald recently showed that
several clothing shops, particularly boutiques, and some furniture shops are
involved in these shenanigans.
A restaurant at the corner of First Street and George
Silundika Avenue charges US$1 for a portion of sadza and quarter chicken but
demands RTGS$27 for the same.
Some furniture shops in the CBD that sell wardrobes, beds
and room dividers among other goods display prices in local currency but the
shop keepers would also whisper to customers that they can pay in foreign
currency.
In one of the shops along Leopold Takawira Street, a double
bed costs $6 400 RTGS but one can folk out just US$250 for the same property.
A two-door wardrobe costs $4 500 RTGS, but using foreign
currency, one has to part with $200. This is the scenario in most of the furniture shops visited
by The Herald.
In one of the boutiques along Robert Mugabe Road, a pair of
men’s sports shoes is sold for US$20 and one needs to pay $500 in local
currency.
A three-piece men’s suit costs US$60 but if one decides to
use local currency, he or she is asked to pay $1 000. Most of the shops demand cash for those who decide to use
local currency.
Outlets which sell car parts along Kaguvi road have the
guts to publicly demand foreign currency for all their sales except for bigger
the shops.
They first inform customers of the US dollar price and only
do the calculation to fix a local currency price upon request. However, US dollar prices appear to be more reasonable that
those in local currency.
The charging of exorbitant prices when one is paying in
local currency has been described by the public as day light robbery and a
clear effort by these elements to force people to pay in foreign currency.
President of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers
Denford Mutashu said the law enforcement agencies should act against defiant
traders.
“If anyone is breaking the law, the law enforcement
agencies of the country should move in. However, it is a market that
increasingly is self-dollarising in order to continue lubricating itself as
seventy percent of raw materials are imported.
“The challenge by business currently is replacement value
and cost of product sourcing by the entire value chain.” Herald
0 comments:
Post a Comment