The Sunday News
Dumisani Nsingo, Senior Business Reporter
THE Government will not consider applications from businesses, which are fond of wantonly increasing prices of commodities including those that are found liable of breaching the coronavirus (Covid-19) lockdown guidelines under its Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and informal sectors cushioning fund, a Cabinet official said.
Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Minister Dr Sithembiso Nyoni said measures would be put in place to ensure that businesses with tendencies of profiteering from consumers’ hard-earned incomes through rampantly hiking prices are not going to benefit from the SMEs and informal sectors’ cushioning facility announced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
“We are saying all rural and urban retail shops that are fond of wantonly increasing prices of commodities should not bother to apply for the cushioning facility, as their applications will be rejected forthwith,” she said.
Dr Nyoni further added that such businesses would not be considered for any Government programmes in the near future.
“Even when we start the process of reviving and capacitating small businesses, we will make sure they don’t qualify because of their uncouth tendencies of exploiting people,” she said.
Over the past two years, the country has witnessed unprecedented increases in prices of basic commodities that have kept eroding people’s incomes, raising calls for Government to intervene and reprimand the business community.
Two weeks ago, the Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers ordered its members to immediately effect price freeze on all basic commodities to allow consumers to access the goods at affordable prices during the 21-day lockdown.
Dr Nyoni said businesses that are also liable of contravening lockdown guidelines would be excluded from accessing the funding.
“We will only deal with businesses that are complying with the President’s call on lockdown guidelines and those that open shops to serve the public in a proper manner, not to open shop to exploit the public whose income are already compromised,” she said.
It is an offence in terms of the Statutory Instrument 83 of 2020 to be found breaching the lockdown guidelines.
Dr Nyoni said her ministry would use its supportive role in the cushioning facilities as well as SMEs and informal players representative bodies to identify undeserving applicants.
The upcoming funding package is being administered by the Ministry of Labour, Public Service and Social Welfare as it has the responsibility of providing social safety nets and potential beneficiaries have been requested to come through their respective registered associations such as SMEs chambers, informal traders and vendors associations dotted across the country.
Dr Nyoni also warned imbibers to refrain from drinking from the same container as it increases their risk of contracting and spreading Covid-19.
“We are calling on people to refrain from drinking beer using the same container especially opaque beer, which is mostly imbibed in groups as this increases their chances of contracting the coronavirus and such habits are in contrary to social distancing, which is one of the precautionary measures of preventing the spread of this disease.”
National Consumer Rights Association advocacy advisor, Mr Effie Ncube said it was prudent for the Government to exclude businesses with unethical practices from the funding facility as a way of condoning consumer abuse.
“There is no doubt that since the announcement and commencement of the coronavirus lockdown, businesses have unjustifiably raised prices of basic commodities to ‘punishing’ levels. With these new prices, food has been placed beyond the reach of millions of Zimbabweans.
This criminal and unethical conduct requires stiff punishment. We have seen in South Africa, the Competition Commission and Consumer Commission issuing huge fines to businesses that have increased prices in response to the lockdown. These bodies have even gone as far as closing large supermarkets as punishment. Europe is doing the same. Asia is doing the same therefore the same should be done in Zimbabwe,” he said.
Mr Ncube called on drastic measures to be taken against businesses that are bent on profiteering from humanitarian crisis.
“Otherwise we run the risk of allowing some unscrupulous individuals to benefit from a national disaster. The nation is in deep pain, as is the rest of the world. As such no business or individual should be allowed to profit out of such a monumental humanitarian nightmare. We must fight together and not take advantage of each other,” he said.
Further adding that: “Government should therefore go beyond denying culprits access to the SMEs cushioning facility. It should protect consumers. It must actually punish and take perpetrators out of business. Government must be robust in its approach and hit hard, not with kid gloves,” he said.
