RENOWNED economist and former MDC legislator Mr Eddie Cross has criticised international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for not acknowledging reforms instituted so far by the New Dispensation.
Speaking in a recent interview with BizNews Radio of South
Africa, Mr Cross derided the international community for being gullible in
accepting propaganda from the opposition and civil society organisations (CSOs)
that stand accused of faking abductions to soil Zimbabwe’s image.
Mr Cross said since the dawn of the Second Republic in 2017
Zimbabwe has been implementing wide and far-reaching reforms that will result
in the country registering a more than 7 percent economic growth this year.
“We have got to pay credit where it is due and the new
Government which came to power in 2017 has started to chart a different course
to Robert Mugabe. Dramatic changes have taken place in the economic sphere. I
am deeply critical of people like the IMF, they know what is going on, they get
information from our systems on a regular basis, they know the consequences but
they have given them (Government) absolutely no credit.
“They have feet on the ground here, they know exactly
what’s going on. In the last few years we have had five alleged abductions and
at least four of those were staged by CSOs to get the world’s attention. And
they succeeded,” said Mr Cross.
Presently, three MDC-A activists, namely Joana Mamombe,
Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marova are facing charges of faking abductions with
some former opposition officials revealing that these practices are widespread
in the opposition and are arranged to coincide with major international events
so as to tarnish the country’s image.
Using the alleged abduction of the trio, MDC Alliance vice
president Mr Tendai Biti recently wrote a letter to the World Bank president,
David Malpass claiming that the three were arrested, tortured and brutally
sexually assaulted by the security forces.
Instead of swallowing the MDC-A propaganda, Mr Cross said
the international institutions should look at the many positives being scored
by the Second Republic.
“I tell you what, there are about 1 200 young white farmers
back farming in Zimbabwe. These are the grandchildren of the farmers who were
kicked out by Mugabe. On top of that we have a third generation of young
industrialists who are coming with their companies and are making a huge impact
here.
“For the past two years, very substantial progress has been
made. We have seen major changes. Inflation has gone down, I think the economy
has now started to respond.
“My view is 2021 is going to be a year of growth. There is
no doubt that this team that took over in 2017 has committed itself to
fundamental and substantial changes.
“You can see that in the way the economy has responded, not
only in agriculture and mining, not only in the recovery of international
commodities,”Mr Cross recently told a South African television station.
Added to that, Mr Cross said there is relative price
stability and also local manufacturers are packing the country’s shops, an
indication that local industry is rising to the challenge.
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic and its detrimental effects on international travel and tourism, successes in the agriculture and mining sector are to offset the negatives, he said.
The respected economist dismissed suggestions by some
prophets of doom that the country’s economy won’t grow because of power cuts
when the reality on the ground is that power outages are now rare while the
completion of Hwange Power Project will ensure that by January next year
Zimbabwe will have an additional 600MW to the national grid.
“Exchange rates have been stable for the past nine months,
I have lost faith in all the multilateral agencies. The IMF has not given us
adequate recognition for the progress made, the World Bank analysis of the
economy this year is totally wrong, real businessmen now feel the same,” said
Mr Cross.
Some of the major milestones that the Second Republic has
scored include the setting up of the US$3.5 billion fund for compensating white
former commercial farmers for infrastructure developments on the farms. This
initiative was meant to show commitment in restoring confidence of the
international community in dealing with the emotive land issue.
Unlike the First Republic, the New Dispensation has also
managed to deal with the twin evils of budget and current deficits. In the
absence of supplementary budgets, the Government has managed to rein in
inflation. In fact, the country is now recording surplus, which is now being
channelled towards transport subsidies and handouts to the vulnerable in society.
All these are clear interventions by the Second Republic,
which as alluded to by Mr Cross are being ignored by international financial
institutions. Herald
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